Facebook walks the aisle with new gay, lesbian wedding icons

Facebook has just made it easier to announce same-sex marriages on the social network by providing icons analogous to the ones heterosexual couples have long used.

The social network has long offered newlyweds a special bride-and-groom "cake topper" icon to include in their timeline to accentuate their announcement, but not all weddings are accurately represented by a bride and groom icon. With that in mind, Facebook this weekend rolled out new groom-groom and bride-bride icons to represent same-sex unions.

One of the first appearances of the new icons was with the wedding announcement of Facebook co-founder Chris Hughes to his longtime boyfriend Sean Eldridge. More than 2,000 Facebook users "liked" the announcement, including Facebook co-founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) applauded the move, calling it an important step in increasing recognition of gay and lesbian unions.

"Following Facebook's addition of domestic partnership and civil union to profile options last year, these new marriage icons for timeline are another important way for same-sex couples to be recognized," Allison Palmer, GLAAD's vice president of campaigns and programs, said in a statement. "This move is the latest in a series of measures Facebook has taken to support and include the LGBT community, which earned it the distinction of being the first social media company to receive a GLAAD Media Award earlier this year."

In February 2011, Facebook expanded its relationship status options from the basic single, married, or "it's complicated" to include "in a civil union" and "in a domestic partnership."