"I didn't make any video," Brooks said. "This is America and if someone wants to be gay, they can be gay. It's their right. But I didn't make any video."

49ers GayMemes

When Brooks was shown the video on an iPhone, he said, "Oh, that. It was an anti-bullying video, not a gay (rights) video."

Eric Branch has covered the 49ers at the San Francisco Chronicle since 2011, when he arrived after covering the team in 2010 at the Santa Rosa Press Democrat.

The It Gets Better campaign was launched in 2010 in response to a series of suicides by gay teens who were bullied in school.

Gay san francisco 49ersshirt

Our 1890 lumen solar flag pole light is a set of three light heads, each containing 6 bright LEDs covers 360 degree angle. Each head can be individually adjusted to beam at different directions using 180 degree know adjustment. Apollo Solar panel is glass protected and the light heads are made from die cast aluminum. The light is designed to come on/off automatically from dusk to dawn.

Gay 49ersFans gif

"With their 'It Gets Better' video, the 49ers are shining a golden beacon of hope to LGBT youth, and as a gay man, I enthusiastically applaud their courage and leadership," Chapin said.

The "It Gets Better" video, of course, was a topic in the wake of antigay remarks made by 49ers cornerback Chris Culliver during a radio interview Tuesday.

In August, the 49ers became the first NFL team to release an "It Gets Better" video, which encourages gay teens to seek help if they are bullied because of their sexual orientation.

"The San Francisco 49ers are proud to join ItGetsBetter.org to let all LGBT teens know that it gets better," said Whitner, who later added, "On behalf of the entire 49ers organization, we are on your side. And we promise: It gets better."

Gay san francisco 49ersplayers

In the PSA, which included safety Donte Whitner and nose tackle Ricky Jean Francois, Whitner is the only player to make reference to the gay community.

A graduate of UCLA, he’s won nine national APSE awards in various divisions, including recognition in 2018 for a breaking-news story on the arrest of 49ers linebacker Reuben Foster. In 2023, he received a first-place award in feature writing from the Pro Football Writers of America for a story on team pastor Earl Smith. Before covering the 49ers, he covered endless events, including archery tournaments and lawnmower races, while also working at the Logansport (Ind.) Pharos-Tribune, York (Pa.) Daily Record, Alexandria (La.) Town Talk and San Luis Obispo Tribune. He was included in the “Best American Sports Writing 2001,” under notable writing of that year, for a column on the joy and challenge of being a small-town sportswriter.

Gay san francisco 49ersnews

Our 1890 lumen solar flag pole light is a set of three light heads, each containing 6 bright LEDs covers 360 degree angle. Each head can be individually adjusted to beam at different directions using 180 degree know adjustment. Apollo Solar panel is glass protected and the light heads are made from die cast aluminum. The light is designed to come on/off automatically from dusk to dawn.

On Thursday, however, two of the four players who participated in the trail-blazing project said initially that they weren't in the video and, later, were clearly unaware it was aimed at gay youths, USA Today reported. Linebacker Ahmad Brooks and nose tackle Isaac Sopoaga took part in the one-minute public-service announcement, but needed their memory jogged when asked about their involvement. The video was filmed in the spring.

On Thursday, Dan Savage, the co-founder of the It Gets Better campaign, said, via Twitter, that he would remove the 49ers video from ItGetsBetter.org.

The 49ers were encouraged to participate in the project by Sean Chapin of San Francisco, a lifelong Niners fan who started an online petition that received more than 16,000 signatures on Change.org. In August, Chapin released a statement saluting the team for its involvement.