As long as everyone’s freaking out over Clay Aiken and Lindsay Lohan, here’s some added perspective:
ITEM: Broadcast television will have 16 gay and bisexual regular characters in prime-time series this fall, more than double the seven of a year ago, according to a new study from the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation:
I mention this partially because many moons ago in grad school, I read a thesis in which a student did a study like this covering TV shows from the 1950s up to somewhere in the mid-late 80s (when the thesis was submitted). That study also rated how GLBTs were portrayed (i.e. positive/negative, realistic vs stereotypes, etc). I don’t remember the exact numbers, but suffice to say GLBT characters in prime time were rare, and were usually camp or serial killers (or, better yet, camp serial killers).
Progress! Now if they’d only allow GLBT sex scenes on TV ...
Anyway, I’m still waiting for someone to map a study like this against the number of GLBT actors/actresses on prime time TV, regardless of whether their characters are straight, gay, bi or whatever. I have five American dollars that says the GLBT percentage for actors/actresses vs characters is way higher. Which would be fun.
Not ready for prime time,
This is dF
ITEM: Broadcast television will have 16 gay and bisexual regular characters in prime-time series this fall, more than double the seven of a year ago, according to a new study from the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation:
These characters accounted for 2.6% of all the regular characters in TV series, up from 1.1% last year and 1.3% in 2006.
I mention this partially because many moons ago in grad school, I read a thesis in which a student did a study like this covering TV shows from the 1950s up to somewhere in the mid-late 80s (when the thesis was submitted). That study also rated how GLBTs were portrayed (i.e. positive/negative, realistic vs stereotypes, etc). I don’t remember the exact numbers, but suffice to say GLBT characters in prime time were rare, and were usually camp or serial killers (or, better yet, camp serial killers).
Progress! Now if they’d only allow GLBT sex scenes on TV ...
Anyway, I’m still waiting for someone to map a study like this against the number of GLBT actors/actresses on prime time TV, regardless of whether their characters are straight, gay, bi or whatever. I have five American dollars that says the GLBT percentage for actors/actresses vs characters is way higher. Which would be fun.
Not ready for prime time,
This is dF
no subject
on 2008-09-25 12:29 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2008-09-25 12:37 pm (UTC)btw, when was Clay Aiken not gay? :P
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on 2008-09-26 02:15 am (UTC)By which time "coming out" wouldn't even be necessary. There would be no closet to hide in.
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on 2008-09-25 02:24 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2008-09-26 02:17 am (UTC)no subject
on 2008-09-26 05:02 am (UTC)no subject
on 2008-09-26 05:06 am (UTC)no subject
on 2008-09-26 05:22 am (UTC)