Cyd Zeigler

Cyd Zeigler Jr. is a commentator and author in the field of sexuality and sports. Zeigler co-founded Outsports and the National Gay Flag Football League. He had a featured part in the documentary F(l)ag Football (2015).

Cyd Zeigler
Zeigler in 2015
Born
Cyd Zeigler Jr.

Harwich, Massachusetts, U.S.
EducationStanford University (BA)
Occupations
  • Commentator
  • sports editor
  • author
Known forco-founding Outsports
SpouseDan Pinar

Early life and education

Zeigler was born in Harwich, Massachusetts, and lived there through high school. He was a track and field athlete and led his high school track team in scoring three consecutive years.[1] Zeigler graduated from Stanford University (B.A., Communication), where he founded Theta Delta Chi fraternity, was on the Stanford Men's Ultimate (Frisbee) Team, and was a contributor to the Stanford Review newspaper.[2]

Career

He is a former sports editor for Genre Magazine, former associate editor for the New York Blade, and has written for Playboy, MSNBC, CNN, New York Press and Out Magazine. He has appeared on ESPN, Fox Sports Radio, CNN, and MSNBC as well as contributing to Sports Illustrated, Logo and The New York Times.

In 1999, Zeigler and Jim Buzinski founded Outsports.[3] They co-authored The Outsports Revolution: Truth & Myth in the World of Gay Sports.[4] In 2002, Buzinski and Zeigler also co-founded the National Gay Flag Football League.[5][6]

Zeigler is credited with breaking the story of John Amaechi coming out of the closet in February 2007. Zeigler has also broken national stories,including the coming out of then-NFL prospect Michael Sam, transgender Div. 1 NCAA athlete Kye Allums, openly gay football players Wade Davis and Alan Gendreau, and more.[7] Zeigler is featured in the 2015 documentary, F(l)ag Football.[6][8] He was also inducted into the LGBTQ Journalists Hall of Fame by the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association.[9]

In spring 2023, Zeigler was criticized for his public transition to the Republican Party and for his endorsement of Governor Ron DeSantis for the 2024 United States presidential election.[10]

Personal life

Zeigler presently lives in Los Angeles. He previously lived in New York City where he was a research editor for a global financial services firm. He was previously a development executive for Disney Channel, focusing on their movie and music franchises before leaving in 2001.[11]

Works
  • Zeigler, Cyd; Buzinski, Jim (2007), The Outsports Revolution: Truth and Myth in the World of Gay Sports, Alyson, ISBN 978-1-59350-005-4
  • Zeigler, Cyd (2016), Fair Play: How LGBT Athletes Are Claiming Their Rightful Place in Sports, Edge Of Sports, ISBN 978-1617754470
  • O'Callaghan, Ryan; Zeigler, Cyd (2019), My Life On The Line: How the NFL Damn Near Killed Me and Ended Up Saving My Life, Edge Of Sports, ISBN 978-1617757594

Awards and nominations
Year Award Nominated Work Category Result
2003 NLGJA Excellence in Journalism AwardsOutsportsExcellence in New MediaWon
2010 GLAAD Media AwardsFormer College Football Captain was Openly GayDigital JournalismNominated
2011 NLGJA Excellence in Journalism AwardsKye Allums: First transgender man playing women's basketballOnline Journalism3rd place
2012 All Sports Film FestivalThanksgiving GameOriginal Feature ScreenplayWon
2014 GLAAD Media AwardsComing Out KickingDigital JournalismNominated
2015 GLAAD Media AwardsConner Mertens came out to his college football teamDigital JournalismNominated
National Lesbian and Gay Journalists AssociationCyd ZeiglerLisa Ben Award for Excellence in Features Coverage[12]Won
2017 GLAAD Media AwardsFormer Patriots and Chiefs tackle Ryan O’Callaghan comes out as gayDigital Journalism - MultimediaNominated
2019 GLAAD Media AwardsFinding the truth about transgender athletes in women’s sportsDigital Journalism - ArticleNominated
2020 National Lesbian and Gay Journalists AssociationCyd ZeiglerHall of FameWon
GLAAD Media AwardsTrans Athletes’ Fight for Inclusion in World RugbyDigital Journalism - ArticleNominated
2022 GLAAD Media AwardsSummer Olympics Team LGBTQ coverageSpecial RecognitionWon

References
  1. "About OutSports", Outsports.com, archived from the original on 2012-01-04, retrieved 2008-10-29
  2. "Sports Media's Role in Shaping Social Justice | SXSW 2016 Event Schedule". SXSW Schedule 2016. Retrieved 2023-03-31.
  3. Branch, John (2011-04-07). "Confronting an Enduring Taboo". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-03-09.
  4. Buzinksi, Jim (2007). The outsports revolution. Cyd Zeigler (1st ed.). New York: Alyson. ISBN 978-1-59350-005-4. OCLC 124972879.
  5. Sastre, Sole (2016-06-28). "South Africa's rugby team Jozi Cats defy gay stereotypes". Miami Herald. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
  6. de la Cretaz, Britni (2017-07-06). "Inside the National Gay Flag Football League With 'F(l)ag Football'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
  7. Cyd Zeigler. TypePad.com. Accessed March 7th, 2012.
  8. Jaworowski, Ken (2017-06-15). "Review: 'F(l)ag Football' Finds Gay Athletes Upending Stereotypes". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
  9. "Alumnus appreciates journalists hall of fame honor". communicator.bellisario.psu.edu. Retrieved 2023-03-14.
  10. Casey, John (2023-04-01). "The Editor of Outsports Turns on Our Community". The Advocate. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-06-04.
  11. Branch, John (2011-04-07). "Confronting an Enduring Taboo". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-03-14.
  12. "Cyd Zeigler - NLGJA".
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