Michael Triplett, president of the
National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association (NLGJA), has died.
He was 48.
Triplett, an assistant managing editor
at Bloomberg BNA, was president of the Washington chapter of NLGJA
then became president of the national group last year.
He was diagnosed with a mouth cancer
connected to the human papillomavirus (HPV) in 2011, which he
documented in a post at the Good
Men Project.
“This year, my 48th
birthday will also mark the first anniversary of my tongue cancer
diagnosis,” he wrote in April. “In the past year, I've had:
three surgeries, 42 days of traditional radiation treatment, five
rounds of chemotherapy, and five days of advanced radiation
treatment.”
“I've lost over 50 pounds and all my
facial hair, had almost half of my tongue removed, undergone two
high-tech robotic procedures, used up over 70 percent of my
accumulated sick leave, and had my 76-year-old mother living with me
for about 12 weeks to assist in my care.”
GLAAD President Herndon Graddick
offered his condolences: “We join the LGBT community in mourning
the loss of a great leader, Michael Triplett, whose work to secure
equality and improve the newsroom will live on in the countless lives
he affected.”
Triplett died while visiting family in
Alabama. He is survived by his partner Jack.