In case you missed it, Good Morning America host and cancer survivor Robin Roberts decided to come out earlier this week. Thanks to her lengthy career and affable, unimposing personality, the news has created a ton of headlines over the past two days, but thankfully, almost all of them have been positive and supportive. Maybe that’s because Roberts is such a well-respected and well-liked journalist. Maybe it’s because of the classy and understated way she decided to come out (casual Facebook announcement. More than likely, though, it’s a combination of both.
Typically, there are three different ways gay celebrities come out of the closet. The first is via a big, splashy magazine cover or news story. Think Jason Collins. The second is via a quick and forced outing. Think Anne Burrell, and the third is via very understated acknowledgement, as if it’s not even a secret at all. Think Matt Bomer.
Apart from Michael Musto and a small percentage of homosexuals, there are very few people who actively encourage forced outings, but as for whether option one or three is the better choice, the community is fiercely divided. Many are convinced as loud of headlines as possible need to be printed in order to let Americans living in the Heartland know the party is open, proud and unashamed. Many others, however, are convinced there’s no weapon quite as powerful as treating homosexuality as if it’s the most normal thing in the world and not a news story to even be discussed.
Without question, the casual approach receives far and away the least amount of backlash, and from an objective point of view, it comes off as the coolest and classiest too. There’s no stink of publicity grab or underlying objective in play. It’s just an acknowledgement of a human being and a relationship that’s of the utmost importance, in this case Robin’s longtime life partner Amber.
Well played, Robin. Keep doing you.
