'It Gets Better' Project to Receive TV Academy Governors Award

The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Board of Governors has voted to bestow its prestigious Governors Award this year upon the "It Gets Better Project™," an organization devoted to supporting LGBT young people via its website, initiatives and the posting of original videos with messages of empathy, encouragement and hope for a positive future. The announcement was made by Television Academy Chairman and CEO Bruce Rosenblum.

Created in 1978, the Governors Award salutes an individual, company or organization that has made a substantial impact and demonstrated the extraordinary use of television. A Governors Award Selection Committee presents up to seven candidates for the Board of Governors' review and final vote. There is a possibility of one or no award every year. The award will be presented to the "It Gets Better Project" co-founders Dan Savage and Terry Miller during the 2012 Creative Arts Emmy® Awards on Saturday, September 15th, at Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE.

"The It Gets Better Project is a great example of strategically, creatively and powerfully utilizing the media to educate and inspire," said Rosenblum. "This is television moving well beyond the traditional physical set in the viewer's living room to the intimacy of the monitor, laptop, tablet or mobile device and delivering the ideal mix of inspiration and creativity to affect awareness and, ultimately, change. The Academy is proud to celebrate the success the Project is already having on LGBT youth, and, to hopefully, drive more visibility for this important cause."

In September 2010, syndicated columnist and author Dan Savage created a YouTube video with his partner Terry Miller to inspire hope for young people facing harassment. In response to a number of students taking their own lives after being bullied in school, they wanted to create a personal way for supporters everywhere to tell LGBT youth that, yes, it does indeed get better. The "It Gets Better Project" has become a worldwide movement, inspiring more than 50,000 user-created videos viewed more than 50 million times. To date, the project has received submissions from celebrities, organizations, activists, politicians and media personalities, including President Barack Obama, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Rep. Nancy Pelosi, Adam Lambert, Anne Hathaway, Colin Farrell, Matthew Morrison,, Joe Jonas, Joel Madden, Ke$ha, Sarah Silverman, Tim Gunn, Ellen Degeneres, Suze Orman, the staffs of The Gap, Google, Facebook, Pixar, the Broadway community, and many more. For more information on the It Gets Better Project, please visit www.itgetsbetter.org.