The controversy over Tracy Morgan's
anti-gay jokes last summer ended with a big laugh on NBC's 30
Rock.
Morgan, a co-star on the NBC sitcom,
drew the ire of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation
(GLAAD) when he delivered a standup routine in Nashville in which he
condoned anti-gay bullying and said he would stab his son to death if
he found out he was gay. Morgan has subsequently apologized for the
rant and met with young victims of anti-gay violence.
During Thursday's 30 Rock
episode, Tracy Jordan (played by Morgan) is met with loud protests
over a homophobic standup routine.
His boss, Liz Lemon (Tina Fey) plays
interference and demands that he apologize.
“You're a public figure and believe
it or not, the dumb things you say may influence or hurt people,”
she tells him.
Instead of apologizing to GLAAD, Jordan
mistakenly apologizes to the Glad corporation.
“I thought it was hilarious,”
Herndon Graddick, senior director of programs at GLAAD, told The
New York Times. “We've been called worse than trash bag
manufacturers and look forward to seeing the second part next week.”