Alec Baldwin Tries To Ease Backlash Over Gay Slur

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) – Alec Baldwin jokingly professed his love for a man in front of a large crowd Wednesday as he tries to ease the backlash triggered by an Internet clip that captured him berating a photographer with what sounded like a gay slur.

The Emmy-winning actor denied punctuating a tirade outside his New York home last week with an epithet that demeans gay men.

Baldwin’s remarks came before he gave a pep talk to a packed audience at a technology conference in San Francisco.

MSNBC suspended Baldwin’s talk show on the TV network for two weeks after the entertainment website TMZ posted a video of the combustible actor’s latest outburst.

Baldwin says he now realizes he needs to be more careful about the words he chooses.