The media operate as socialising agents and the representation of LGBTQIA+ characters impacts the viewers’ representation of this group but also those who are part of this community. Why is it important to have role models? To what extent the increase of LGBTQIA+ visibility on screen helps promoting diversity and fighting stereotypes?
IFrom invisibility to visibility
1 Stereotyped characters
In 1971, All in the Family became the first American sitcom to show a gay character on TV. Its fifth episode deals with stereotypes concerning gay people. The main character, Archie, thinks his daughter’s effeminate friend is homosexual but it turns out that it is one of Archie’s friends who is.
It was not until 1981 that a TV show with a gay lead character was shown on primetime US television, when NBC’s Love, Sidney aired. However the show’s titular character Sidney Shorr, a single gay man, remains in the closet for every one of the 40 episodes.
KEY WORD
The expression “staying in the closet” such as “to be in the closet” or “to be closeted” is used to describe a person who did not come out. They keep their homosexuality for themselves, so as to avoid backlash from family members, discrimination in the workplace, etc.
2 Major milestones
In 1989, the first black lesbian relationship on US TV was broadcast by ABC in the series The Women of Brewster Place. In 1997, Ellen DeGeneres became the first American TV presenter to come out.
From 1998 to 2006, on NBC, the TV show Will & Grace portrays an openly gay character as the main character. It paved the way to other shows such as Modern Family, The L Word, Sense8, etc.
In 1996, Friends became the first TV show depicting a lesbian wedding. The first TV series showing a romantic gay kiss is Dawson Creek’s in 1999. It was not until 2004, that a show was made about lesbian characters: The L-Word.
IHow to measure representation?
1 Using GLAAD to measure progress
GLAAD (Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) is an American non-governmental media monitoring organisation. It was founded in 1985 to protest against the ways gay and lesbian people are portrayed on screen. It aims at putting pressure on media organisations to end what appeared as homophobic reporting. For instance, in 1987 it made The New York Times use the word “gay” instead of using derogatory terms to talk about homosexuality.
KEY WORD
Derogatory comments and terms show a strong disapproval and are disrespectful. It is a harsh way to express one’s criticism and it is considered insulting.
GLAAD issues a report on a year basis to check if the lack of representation is still present or not. In its 17th annual Where We Are on TV report, out of the 775 series-regular characters on the 2021-2022 prime-time slate, 11.9% of them are LGBTQIA+. That’s a record-high percentage for broadcast television.
2 More diverse leading roles
The streaming platform Netflix offered more visibility to LGBTQIA+ characters with the movie Love Simon released in 2017. It was the first rom-com with a leading gay character who is looking for love.
In the fourth episode of FBI: Most Wanted, it is revealed that one of the main characters called Sheryll Barnes is a lesbian who is married and has got a daughter.
In recent years, non-binary or transgender characters are portrayed on screen, allowing more representation and self-identification of the viewers. There was Laverne Cox in Orange is the New Black (2013-2019) and there is Dr Kai Bartley in Grey’s Anatomy (since 2021).