The Humane Society’s Genesis Awards recognized “The Colbert Report,” Drew Barrymore starring feature “Big Miracle,” “Rock Center With Brian Williams,” David E. Kelly’s “Harry’s Law,” Discovery Channel’s “Ivory Wars” and singer Ke$ha in major news and entertainment media categories at Saturday night’s benefit gala awards. “Dancing With the Stars” judge Carrie Ann Inaba hosted the Beverly Hilton ceremony.
The Genesis awards honor TV shows, films and other entertainment for their efforts on behalf of animal protection. Universal’s “Big Miracle” won for its true story about an international effort to save a family of trapped whales. The Sid Caesar Comedy award went to “The Colbert Report” for its satire of a Congressman’s defense of dogfighting, while NBC’s “Harry’s Law” won in the dramatic series category for a storyline questioning the practice of keeping primates in captivity. Discovery’s “Ivory Wars” was honored for its look at the increasing elephant ivory trade, while NBC’s “Rock Center With Brian Williams'” reporting on endangered orangutans, rhinos and chimps in research tied with ABC’s “Nightline” for its investigation of abuse of Tennessee Walking Horses.
Ke$ha received the Wyler award for her work spreading the word about animal protection issues to her fans.
“We are so grateful to the news and entertainment media for keeping animal protection issues firmly in their view in genres as diverse as comedy programming and documentaries. Concern for the welfare of animals has universal audience appeal, and since so much of what negatively impacts animals occurs out of sight, it’s important that these issues remain in the media spotlight,” said Beverly Kaskey, senior director of HSUS’ Hollywood Outreach program and exec producer of the Genesis Awards.
The complete Genesis winners are:
FEATURE FILM
“Big Miracle” – Universal Pictures
TV NEWSMAGAZINE
“Nightline – The Ugly Truth Behind High Stepping Horses” – ABC
“Rock Center With Brian Williams – At What Cost?” – NBC
“Ken and Rosie”
“Last Stand”
DRAMATIC SERIES
“Harry’s Law – Gorilla My Dreams” – NBC
SID CAESAR COMEDY AWARD
“The Colbert Report” – Representative Steve King on dogfighting – Comedy Central
TV DOCUMENTARY
“Ivory Wars” – Discovery Channel
REALITY SERIES
“Wild Justice” – Nat Geo Channel
NATIONAL NEWS
“World News” with Diane Sawyer Downer cow video – ABC
MORNING SHOW
CBS This Morning “Shark Tagging”
LOCAL TV NEWS
KNBC 4 News “Bunny Trafficking”
CHILDREN’S PROGRAMMING
“Nick News With Linda Ellerbee – Animals? Show Me the Money!” – Nickelodeon
BRIGITTE BARDOT INTERNATIONAL TV
“60 Minutes – Jungle Warfare” – Nine Network Australia
MAGAZINE
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC – “Cheetahs on the Edge” by Roff Smith
“Ivory Worship” by Bryan Christy
“Rhino Wars” by Peter Gwin
COLUMNIST
THE CHATTANOOGAN.COM – Roy Exum multiple part series on Tennessee Walking Horse
NEWSPAPER SERIES
The Sacramento Bee three-part series on Wildlife Services by Tom Knudson
BRIGITTE BARDOT INTERNATIONAL PRINT
SOUTH ASIA Magazine (Pakistan) “Animal Welfare in Islam” by Aiman Reyaz and
“Law of the Land” by Anees Jillani, with commentary by Syed Rizvi
THE WYLER AWARD
Ke$ha
THE GENESIS CORPORATE AWARD
LUSH Fresh Handmade Cosmetics
