This weekend the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association inducted Michelangelo Signorile, Don Michaels, and William Dorr Lambert Legg into the LGBT Journalists Hall of Fame. But considering Signorile’s work with ACT UP, his long history of outing anti-gay public figures, and his numerous columns about sexual politics, it’s kinda surprising that Signorile wasn’t already in their hall of fame. Let’s take a quick stroll through some of his finer moments:
– He outed Hollywood producer David Geffen, and then Assistant Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs) Pete Williams and publishing tycoon Malcolm Forbes and later revealed HIV+ safe-sex advocate Andrew Sullivan was engaging in barebacking.
– As more of his friends grew sick and died, Signorile joined the AIDS activist group ACT UP in 1988. During his time with the group, he interrupted a speech by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger (a.k.a. The current Pope) to protest the Catholic Church’s stance against condoms and homosexuality. Signorile jumped on a marble platform at St. Peter’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, pointed at Ratzinger and shouted, “He is no man of God!He is no man of God—he is the devil!” (The police quickly carted Signorile away.) He eventually became ACT UP’s media committee chair, ensuring that their dramatic protests got news coverage. What an attention whore (in a good way).
– While working for Out magazine, Signorile had a disagreement with editor James Collard. Signorile claims that Collard had an “ex-gay” sensibility and wanted Signorile to stop writing such inflammatory, activist pieces. “We had a heated discussion and he insulted my sensibilities and it made me so angry I threw water in his face,” said Signorile, who then quit. Girl knows how to make an exit!
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– He has released a 14-step book telling people how to come out of the closet, was nominated for the New York Public Library Book Award for Excellence in Journalism for his best-selling book Life Outside: The Signorile Report on Gay Men: Sex, Drugs, Muscles and the Passages of Life, and once wrote a controversial column in which he 
discussed his “lapse” into unsafe sex despite his work as an AIDS activist. That column later appeared in The New York Times and inspired a 60 Minutes piece on the same topic.
– He now hosts a daily talk show on SiriusXM’s OutQ channel called The Michael Signorile Show. Most recently, he excoriated ex-GLAAD president Jarrett Barrios for refusing to talk about GLAAD’s endorsement of the AT&T/T-Mobile merger. Barrios refused to appear on the show without a board member at his side. Signorile’s blog posted nearly daily updates about the AT&T/GLAAD scandal up through Barrios’ eventual resignation.
Congratulations to Signorile for continuing his unapologetic brand of queer journalism. May his inclusion in the LGBT Journalists Hall of Fame embolden other writers to illuminate our lives with as much honesty and conviction as he has.
slanty
It was a long overdue honor.
milhouse
Wait, there actually IS an LGBT Journalist Hall of Fame?
Tony
I listen to his show daily on Sirus/XM and he’s amazing.
ggreen
While I respect MS tremendously as a journalist, writer and radio host, he definitely has a comfort zone he doesn’t go out of. I went to a book reading by him at A Different Light in San Francisco years ago. Not only did he not take any questions from the audience he ran out of the place like his hair was on fire.
I'll second that
@milhouse: That was my reaction. When did this happen and who runs it? Who else is in it?
TMikel
At least he has the recognition he has long deserved NOW! Kudos to him and all he has done for us!
christopher di spirito
Michael Signorile is a smart guy. He’s always well-prepared on his Sirius radio program.
ewe
Go Staten Island.
Danny
Michael Signorile is a complete asshole on his show.
tinkerbell
Michelangelo Signorile is one of my heroes and his show is the reason I subscribe to Sirius. He wields reason and logic like no one else can.
lookiTT
Signorile’s a dishonest self-hating-dago creep. Also admits he gaybashed to impress his “friends” as a kid. I hope he gets in an accident where Fat Pam Spaulding falls on him.
christopher di spirito
Michelangelo Signorile is everything John Aravosis wishes he was but isn’t.
Chase
That’s too bad as he’s a terrible host, doesn’t listen to his callers, and twists what they say without taking into account what they are saying. He’s a disgusting hypocritical “activist” who only sees things one way and his take on 9/11 bothered me as well as his take on this country. In another country he would not be allowed to exist as we’ve seen this week when in the Mid East, if you say some of the things he did, he would have been done away with. He often twists what people say to fit his own stance on any issue. I can’t stand him.
Jim in St Louis
No 10 Tinkerbell: Was that sarcasm?