Names and faces
■ Dule Hill and other cast members of “The West Wing” teamed up Thursday with the Biden administration to urge other Americans who are struggling with their mental health to lean on loved ones in their tough times. The actors participated in a roundtable discussion with the White House to share their own stories of childhood abuse, isolation during the covid-19 and struggles to help their children navigate social media. Hill said he struggled with isolation during the covid-19 pandemic. “It’s important we all just continue to engage each other, to see each other and our humanity,” Hill said. “I can still feel isolated and alone. But I want you to know you are not alone. I am not alone, and together, we will make our way to our brighter tomorrow.” The newly launched 988 hotline connects callers with trained mental health counselors.
■ Actress Candace Cameron Bure said she doesn’t expect her new network to feature LGBTQ story lines in its Christmas movies. Bure left the Hallmark Channel in April to become chief creative officer at Great American Family, which the Wall Street Journal described as “an upstart cable channel that is positioning itself as the God-and-country alternative for holiday entertainment.” “I think that Great American Family will keep traditional marriage at the core,” she told the Wall Street Journal. After years of airing holiday films with straight, primarily white lead characters, Hallmark aired its first “Countdown to Christmas” movie with gay leads in 2020. “I knew that the people behind Great American Family were Christians that love the Lord and wanted to promote faith programming and good family entertainment,” Bure told the newspaper Monday. GLAAD suggested that advertisers consider boycotting the network. “It’s irresponsible and hurtful for Candace Cameron Bure to use tradition as a guise for exclusion,” Sarah Kate Ellis, GLAAD’s president and chief executive, said in a statement Tuesday. “Actors, advertisers, cable and streaming platforms, and production companies should take note and seriously consider whether they want to be associated with a network that holds exclusion as one of its values.” Representatives for Bure did not respond immediately Wednesday to the Los Angeles Times’ request for comment.