Conservative US chat-show host angers anti-gay group by supporting same-sex marriage

A conservative TV chat-show host has angered an Illinois-based anti-gay group for coming out in support of gay marriage.

Elisabeth Hasselbeck, a host on the ABC show The View, said in an interview with Fancast: "I am not ultra-ultra-conservative on every issue – I actually support gay marriage. I think the gay marriage thing would definitely surprise people."

A Naperville, Illinois-based anti-gay group called Americans for Truth About Homosexuality (AFTAH) responded by condemning Ms Hasselbeck for what they see as her abandonment of her conservative and Christian principles.

The president of AFTAH, Peter LaBarbera, has also recently taken other conservative figures to task, such as Glenn Beck of Fox News and Ann Coulter, calling them "pro-gay marriage sellouts".

Mr Beck had said that he didn't see gay marriage as a threat to the USA. Ms Coulter agreed to appear as a speaker at homocon, a New York City conference for gay Republicans. However, Ms Coulter pointed out that she spoke to many groups and that "giving a speech is not an endorsement of every position held by the people I'm speaking to."

The Southern Poverty Law Centre (SPLC) has branded AFTAH a "hate group" for spreading negative proganda and suggesting that homosexuality is curable. However, the group appear to have little support: a recent three-day "Truth Academy" event held by them was reportedly attended by fewer than 50 supporters, with a greater number showing up to protest.