The 19th annual Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation Media Awards were held in New York last night...but don't worry, you haven't missed them if you live in Los Angeles, San Francisco or Miami. Those ceremonies wilol be held in the coming months. I was so happy to see that the CBS daytime drama "As The World Turns" was honored for its Luke and Noah storyline and both of the wonderful actors Jake Silbermann and Van Hansis were there to accept. The whole thing about not letting the characters to kiss has become so annoying and distracting though. Without that kind of affection once in awhile in moments when it should obviously happen, the show undermines the storyline and the work of these tremendous young actors. It is insulting, Sorry to go off, but it is difficult to feel completely satisfied with the show getting the honor and I really do want to feel thrilled for the show.

\Other honorees:

- Strand Releasing's Middle East political romance "The Bubble" and Paramount's fantasy "Stardust" (featuring Robert De Niro as a gay pirate) took home outstanding film awards, as did First Run's documentary "For the Bible Tells Me So."

- Judy Shepard won the top Excellence in Media Award for her efforts to stop anti-gay violence after the death of her son Matthew Shepard.

- MTV Networks president Brian Graden took home the Vito Russo Award for his networks' inclusion of gays in programming, and cable network BET J won special recognition for the same.

Other worthy honorees: segments from CBS' "60 Minutes" ("Don't Ask Don't Tell") and ABC's "20/20" ("My Secret Self: A Story of Transgender Children") tied for outstanding TV newsmagazine journalism. The award for outstanding TV journalism news segment went to CNN's "Anderson Cooper 360" for "The First Casualty."