TV
Small increase of LGB representation on US TV
Published Tuesday, Aug 30 2005, 07:10 BST | By James Welsh
The 2005-06 US TV season will see a small increase in the number of LGB characters compared to the year before, the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation said on Monday.
The organisation counts 16 "series regular" and recurring gay, lesbian and bisexual roles in 14 different scripted broadcast network programmes this season, out of a total of 710 roles on 110 shows. That figure is a slight uptick from the 11 characters in the 2004-05 season, but GLAAD called the total representation - which it estimates as less than 2% - "a cause for concern." There will not be a single transgendered "series regular" or recurring role in any broadcast network programme.
"This is a shocking misrepresentation of reality and of the audience watching these programmes," said GLAAD entertainment media director Damon Romine. "The LGBT community wants to see itself represented on television. It's that simple. We want to see our stories told and we want to know that our lives matter.
"Television is a reflection of society, but the broadcast networks are not doing enough to fairly represent the diversity of their audience. We are still too often portrayed as stereotyped caricatures, and the reality of our lives and relationships is largely ignored."
The organisation praised the efforts of cable channels to raise the profile of LGBT characters on its shows, with 25 LGBT characters counted for cable shows.
"Cable remains the place where we can find multi-dimensional, complex LGBT characters, as well as gay and lesbian people of colour," said Romine.
The organisation counts 16 "series regular" and recurring gay, lesbian and bisexual roles in 14 different scripted broadcast network programmes this season, out of a total of 710 roles on 110 shows. That figure is a slight uptick from the 11 characters in the 2004-05 season, but GLAAD called the total representation - which it estimates as less than 2% - "a cause for concern." There will not be a single transgendered "series regular" or recurring role in any broadcast network programme.
"This is a shocking misrepresentation of reality and of the audience watching these programmes," said GLAAD entertainment media director Damon Romine. "The LGBT community wants to see itself represented on television. It's that simple. We want to see our stories told and we want to know that our lives matter.
"Television is a reflection of society, but the broadcast networks are not doing enough to fairly represent the diversity of their audience. We are still too often portrayed as stereotyped caricatures, and the reality of our lives and relationships is largely ignored."
The organisation praised the efforts of cable channels to raise the profile of LGBT characters on its shows, with 25 LGBT characters counted for cable shows.
"Cable remains the place where we can find multi-dimensional, complex LGBT characters, as well as gay and lesbian people of colour," said Romine.
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