Gay Sky News presenter Gareth Barlow. (X/Twitter/Gareth Barlow)
Gay Sky News presenter Gareth Barlow has shared an uplifting message from a viewer who said he was doing “an amazing job just being you” after he casually mentioned his husband live on air.
On Thursday (18 January), Barlow took to X/Twitter to share a message he had received from a comforted viewer.
In the caption he wrote: “I didn’t think about it at the time; but on reflection I’m so grateful I can be my openly authentic self.
“If you’re not ready or unable to be openly LGBTQ+ please know that people you don’t know are rooting for you.”
The message sent from the viewer shared that he and his husband were watching Sky News when Barlow “casually” made reference to his husband on live national TV.
It added: “When I was a young boy I never got to see us represented normally on TV and you’re doing an amazing job just being you.”
The uplifting message, which has been liked more than 1,000 times, has received lots of supportive comments.
One follower commented under the post “representation matters,” while someone else wrote “proud of you”.
“I’m glad that you got it out there during your first week and that it was so natural and casual to do so. This is the way it is supposed to be in this day and age,” another comment read.
Another wrote: “This warms my heart, Gareth. As a gay man, representation really matters.
“We need to be represented across the media, politics, sport, business, academia, all workplaces, and so on. Thank you for being you. Your husband is a very lucky man.”
Diversity in media is a work in progress, but representation of the LGBTQ+ community is slowly becoming more common.
In February 2023, Israeli reporter Yair Sherki proudly came out as gay while defiantly saying there’s no contradiction between his sexuality and his religion.
The year before, Iowa reporter, Nora J.S. Reichardt came out as trans live on air. Following coming out she said she felt a “responsibility” to do so as she’s in a supportive role where she can tackle false news about the LGBTQ+ community.