ISAIAH WASHINGTON - WASHINGTON CALLS ON TOP GAY PR MAN

Troubled ISAIAH WASHINGTON has hired one of Hollywood's top gay public relations gurus to help boost the actor's image after his infamous homophobic controversy. Washington recently underwent counselling after his use of the word "faggot" to describe a homosexual GREY'S ANATOMY castmate turned gay leaders against him. And now he's bringing in openly gay PR HOWARD BRAGMAN to help him with damage control. A source tells website TMZ.com that Bragman is known for "telling it like it is". Bragman's Fifteen Minutes staff have confirmed the legendary PR has added Washington to his client list. A spokesman says, "Our work with Isaiah is about his future, not the past. There is an important dialogue in our society about diversity that needs to happen, and Isaiah is uniquely positioned to be the catalyst for this." Washington called castmate T.R. KNIGHT a "faggot" during an onset fight with co-star PATRICK DEMPSEY last year (06). The actor, who once played a gay man in SPIKE LEE film GET ON THE BUS, repeated the slur during a backstage interview after the Golden Globe Awards - as he attempted to clear his name.