An emcee at the closing night reception for the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association (NLGJA) National Convention resigned from the organization after he welcomed guests at the event saying, “Ladies and gentlemen, things and its” Sept. 9.
The event was emceed by Marshall McPeek, a meteorologist for the ABC affiliate in Columbus, Ohio. McPeek’s comment upset many of the event’s attendees and was taken as a derogatory reference to transgender and non-binary journalists in the room.
McPeek returned to the stage an hour after making the comment and apologized, saying the comment was “inappropriate” and then wished everyone a good night.
LGBTQ journalist Mary Emily O’Hara tweeted about the incident while attending the reception.
Fox News is hosting the closing reception at #NLGJA2018 and one of these emcees just welcomed the “Ladies and gentlemen, things and its” in attendance. 😐 #LGBTMedia18 pic.twitter.com/ZFTelXQEFp
— Mary Emily O’Hara (@MaryEmilyOHara) September 9, 2018
O’Hara also stated that McPeek resigned his membership with the NLGJA Sept. 10.
The NLGJA released a statement via Twitter Sept. 10 apologizing for the “inappropriate, unscripted remark that does not reflect our values.”
A Message from NLGJA https://t.co/wvg5GwO8oy pic.twitter.com/1gHUVVdo6S
— NLGJA (@nlgja) September 9, 2018
FOX News, who has participated in the NLGJA’s National Convention for the last several years and hosted the convention’s closing reception that featured McPeek, has not commented on the incident.
“The NLGJA is an organization of journalists, media professionals, educators and students working from within the news industry to foster fair and accurate coverage of LGBTQ issues,” the organization stated in a press release. “NLGJA opposes all forms of workplace bias and provides professional development to its members.”
The NLGJA also announced its 2018-19 national board of directors at the convention. Sharif Durhams of CNN was confirmed as president and Jen Christensen of CNN was confirmed as vice president of broadcast.
Joining the board of directors is Chris Martin of Bloomberg. Kristina Torres of the University System of Georgia and Sarah Blazucki of U.S. Department of Justice have been elected as at-large directors. Eric Hegedus of The New York Post was re-elected as an at-large director.
All members’ new positions took effect Sept. 9.
