American writer, broadcaster and activist Dan Savage was BOTD in 1964. Born in Chicago, Illinois, he trained as an actor before becoming a sex advice columnist for Seattle newspaper The Stranger. In 1994, he began hosting a weekly radio show Savage Love, discussing LGBT issues and answering callers’ questions about sex and sexuality. In 2003, he famously invited his listeners to provide a definition of “santorum”, as a satirical response to Senator Rick Santorum’s anti-LGBT comments. He launched the Savage Lovecast in 2006, a weekly podcast about sexuality, including interviews with doctors and sex therapists. A global success, it quickly became the top-rated podcast in iTunes’ Health category. In 2010, he launched the It Gets Better Project with his partner Terry Miller, an anti-bullying initiative in which adults recorded videos assuring gay teenagers that life “got better” for LGBT in adult life. The Project has collected over 50,000 video submissions, including contributions from Barack Obama, winning a special Emmy Award in 2012 and spawning a bestselling book. Savage also advocates for LGBT rights and anti-suicide campaigns, and opposes laws restricting pornography and the sale of sex toys. In recent years he has been accused of transphobia, which he has rigorously denied. He and Miller were married in Canada in 2005, and married in the United States in 2012 shortly after the legalisation of same-sex marriage. Savage has spoken publicly about their polyamorous relationship and embrace of leather and fetish culture.