Thomas Roberts
By Angelo Pitillo
Photographed by Douglas Adesko
MSNBC news anchor Thomas Roberts just moved to the Big Apple, but he's already settled into a real New York groove: He walks to work from the Hell's Kitchen apartment he shares with his fiancé, with whom he's planning a big gay fall wedding -- preferably somewhere with city views. "Personal and professional life have blended together really well," he says.
Roberts caused a stir back in 2006 when, then at CNN, he became the first anchor from a national network to come out of the closet. Since moving to MSNBC in 2010, he's continued to stir the pot with his willingness to speak up on LGBT issues. He attributes his outspokenness to both network support and a comfort with who he is. "There are stories that are going to get under my skin just as they would any red-blooded American." It doesn't hurt, adds Roberts, that today's viewers expect a dollop of opinion along with their TV news. "We've got Brian Williams tweeting now," he says. "It's a new generation coming up that has different expectations of how they want to receive their news."
Like Williams, Roberts has benefited from the crossbranding that comes with being part of the NBC family. He's guest-hosted on the Today Show and made cameos on in-house sitcom 30 Rock. And just like Liz Lemon, Roberts says he enjoys elevator rides with network luminaries like Matt Lauer. "He'll say, 'Hey Thomas,' and I'll go, 'OMG, he knows my name!'" Roberts laughs. "It's a happening little place. And you can go ice skating out front if you want. What's not to like about that?"
Thomas wears a jacket by Burberry, shirt by Jil Sander and jeans by Levi's.
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Roberts caused a stir back in 2006 when, then at CNN, he became the first anchor from a national network to come out of the closet. Since moving to MSNBC in 2010, he's continued to stir the pot with his willingness to speak up on LGBT issues. He attributes his outspokenness to both network support and a comfort with who he is. "There are stories that are going to get under my skin just as they would any red-blooded American." It doesn't hurt, adds Roberts, that today's viewers expect a dollop of opinion along with their TV news. "We've got Brian Williams tweeting now," he says. "It's a new generation coming up that has different expectations of how they want to receive their news."
Like Williams, Roberts has benefited from the crossbranding that comes with being part of the NBC family. He's guest-hosted on the Today Show and made cameos on in-house sitcom 30 Rock. And just like Liz Lemon, Roberts says he enjoys elevator rides with network luminaries like Matt Lauer. "He'll say, 'Hey Thomas,' and I'll go, 'OMG, he knows my name!'" Roberts laughs. "It's a happening little place. And you can go ice skating out front if you want. What's not to like about that?"
Thomas wears a jacket by Burberry, shirt by Jil Sander and jeans by Levi's.
MEET THE REST OF OUR 2012 BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE
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