NBC DC Anchor Sits on Drag Queen's Lap for Gay Newspaper Cover for 'Best of Gay DC'

October 26th, 2015 11:13 AM

Here’s more proof that “LGBT” activism is all the rage at NBCUniversal. Wendy Rieger, who anchors the top-rated 5 pm newscast at NBC-owned WRC in Washington, DC was honored as “Best Local TV Personality” by the gay newspaper The Washington Blade. Rieger’s outspoken activism was matched on the cover of their Best of Gay DC issue as she sat on the lap of “Best Drag Queen” Destiny B. Childs and applied makeup.

As we’ve reported before, Rieger is a big supporter of DC’s Sexual Minority Youth Assistance League (SMYAL), routinely hosting their fundraising Fall Brunch. That’s what endears her to the Blade writers:

Rieger, a frequent emcee for SMYAL’s fall brunches, was struck by the injustice young LGBT people faced when she was doing a story on SMYAL and at the time was not allowed to say the location for fear of it being attacked.

“What kind of insanity is that? In a civilized country,” Rieger says. “It turns my stomach to think that people still harbor that much hatred for something that is unlike them.”

Rieger says that growing up in the South and seeing the racism African Americans faced raised her awareness about how poorly people can be treated for being different. When she moved to D.C., she had gay friends and noticed similar injustices that made her want to speak out. She hopes her public persona can help LGBT issues progress in a positive direction.

“If my name in any way takes away some of the fear or anxiety someone may feel because this is an unknown to them and I can help show them that these people are people living their lives and it’s normal, it’s going to be for the greater good in the end,” Rieger says.

The runner-up was WRC anchor Chuck Bell. (Last year, Chuck won and Wendy was the runner-up.) A few pages after the Rieger article is a splashy half-page ad that NBC4 took out, saying "Congratulations Wendy & Chuck! We agree with the Washington Blade readers -- you two really are the best! From your friends at NBC4."