GLAAD Names FOX Most LGBT-Inclusive Broadcast Network, HBO Tops List Of Cable Networks

by Alex Alvarez | 9:20 am, September 28th, 2011

» 40 comments

The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) has released its 16th annual “Where We Are on TV” report, charting the number of LGBT characters in scripted, primetime programming across broadcast and cable networks. This year’s report found that that the overall number of scripted LGBT characters in primetime TV programming has dropped from last year (down from 3.9 to 2.9 percent for scripted series regulars), while the number of regular LGBT characters on mainstream cable network has dropped from 35 to 29, with 25 additional recurring characters across other cable networks.

The award for most inclusive broadcast network goes to Fox, where 6.8 percent of series regulars are gay, lesbian, bisexual and/or transgender. That’s a huge leap for a network which had a total of zero LGBT series regulars in 2007.

So, without further ado, here’s how the big five broadcast networks fare for the coming TV season:

Fox: 8 LGBT series regulars out of 117 total.

ABC: Dropped from having 7.2 percent LGBT characters in 2010 to 3.4 percent in the upcoming season.

CW: 1.5 percent – That’s one LGBT character out of 67 series regulars in scripted primetime shows.

NBC: 3 LGBT series regulars out of 154 total.

CBS: 1 LGBT series regular out of 134 total, although there will be several LGBT recurring characters on the network.

And for cable, HBO has the most LGBT characters for the second year in a row. HBO’s True Blood boasting a total of 6 LGBT characters, tying it with Showtimes’ Shameless for the honor of most inclusive show.

…But GLAAD’s report doesn’t solely measure the number of LGBT characters. It also reviews demographics according gender, race/ethnicity, and people with disabilities on primetime broadcast television. Here’s what their report found:

Male characters (still) outweigh female characters, 56.7 percent to 43.3 percent.

78.2 percent of all series regulars are white.

The number of black characters has decreased by just over two percent (12.1 to 9.9 percent), while there is a slight uptick of Latino characters (4.9 to 5.6 percent). Characters of Asian/Pacific Island descent check in at 4.5 percent.

A total of 0.8 percent of characters will be people with disabilities.

Of the 19 LGB regular characters announced for the 2011-2012 broadcast season, 0 will be black, transgendered or have disabilities, and 5 will belong to a minority race/ethnic group.

And there you have it. What would also be interesting is a comprehensive review of how these characters are portrayed on TV (Are they one-dimensional? How do they reflect or reject common stereotypes? Do they have interesting storylines of their own, or do they mainly serve to prop up other characters?), as well as how that has or has not changed in any way over the years.

What do you make the report’s findings? Is it about what you expected? Any surprises?

GLAAD, glbt, report, Where We Are On TV

Anonymous

Fabulous!
Anonymous

This explains why Bonanza was cancelled . Their percentage of these characters was kind of low .
TruDat

Oh no! How will the lefty loons rationalize this? How will they post anti-Fox rants? What to do, what to do?
http://www.facebook.com/people/Inis-Magrath/100002609901049 Inis Magrath

Fux Entertainment could run all-gay-all-the-time programming and the
network would STILL be a wholly owned and operated product of a 100%
gay-hate-o-phobia machine.
Anonymous

the left will simply not respond.They run like roaches
and hide if the topic isn’t a bash Fox festival
http://www.facebook.com/people/Inis-Magrath/100002609901049 Inis Magrath

Easy, TD, too easy. Fox does it deliberately to raise their ratings on both networks. It’s about money, not social agenda. The entertainment division boosts ratings by running “edgy” programing which always gains audience share. Then, the “news” division boosts rating by ranting about how the LBGT “agenda” is being forced down our throats. Win win for Fox.
TruDat

So, what you’re saying is that Fox executives are smart, whereas those an the flailing MSNBC network are simpletons? I agree wholeheartedly.
Anonymous

Crack is whack.
JimR

You don’t THAY !
Really?
Moderate

Fox employs Shepard Smith and I have read on many Liberal blogs where people are outing him as Gay.
Go Navy

Brilliant! Care to back that up with facts? Or are you relying on the basic lemming MO of using your “feelings” to guide your BS?
Rio

If that’s the case, why are the openly gay democratic talking heads prostituting themselves by being employees of FOXnews? One would think they would be boycotting such a back stabbing organization instead of working for them and contributing to the FOX success.
ceeza

It’s about money stupid… Fox news may be owned by the same company as Fox but they’re different.. The only other similarity besides ownership is that their executives are incredibly smart and shrewd.. They have a great business model let’s face it…..Take Family Guy for instance.. Seth Mcfarlane crushes Fox news publicly daily.. You think Murdoch cares with the amount of money that show brings in…The creator and actors of Glee bash Fox relentlessly…You think Murdoch cares..The funny thing is Glees a Fox show and then Fox News runs pieces about whether Glee is indoctrinating kids with a homosexual agenda…All the while stirring the pot creating more buzz and getting Murdoch more money… The thing that boggles my mind is how you pod people defend Fox endlessly when Murdoch could care less about you… Fox used the tea party brilliantly and they’re still using the teabaggers… They are crushing Perry at the moment after they already crushed Bachmann.. The baggers are too stupid to realize that Mitts the man Murdoch wants and Mitts the nominee Murdoch shall get.. You’ll pull the lever for Mitt saying it’s better than Obama..This after 2 years of fake bagger rally’s preaching against everything you just voted for..Mitts record speaks for itself..You’ve been had again suckers..
ceeza

There are no gay talking heads on Fox news..They might bring gay panelist in but umm no gay host.. You do realize that although owned by the same company Fox news and Fox are two different channels right? You can’t compare Fox news to Fox…Should we indict the entire Wall street journal or The new York post because of what News of the World did?? It’s about money stupid.. That’s why you can’t praise Fox news for what shrewd executives decide to air on Fox.. Murdoch doesn’t care if Family guy or glee bash him on fox..It’s about money stupid.. You fox trolls boggle my mind..
teabagginobama

“There are no gay talking heads on Fox news”

Gay Fox news anchors are not the only ones in the closet apparently; would you like to come out to us Ceeza?
teabagginobama

“The creator and actors of Glee bash Fox relentlessly”

Links plz :)
ceeza

err Rio said there were openly gay talking heads on Fox news.. I simply pointed out there were not..MSNBC and CNN yes Fox news no.. and ps I think all three channels are garbage.. My bigger point is you can’t praise Fox news for other Fox channels programming… unless of course you want to condemn all news corp papers for News of the Worlds hacking scandel .. What say you?
Anonymous

Yeah that great show that gets awards faster then Obama gets a nobel peace prize. Love how the loony left in hollywood talks about bullying in school…yet they consonantly make fun of and bully anyone on the right that they dont like.

Best part they get Emmy awards from their peers for doing it!
Anonymous

Its all a conspiracy from the top!
Anonymous

Actually, it’s amazingly easy to “rationalize.” See, FOX and FOX NEWS are too different companies. Sure, they are under the NewsCorp umbrella, but that don’t follow the same programming protocols at all. Too simplify it more, FOX News is headed by Roger Ailes, FOX Television is not. Even FOX Television and Twentieth Century Fox are two separate entities wherein to show FOX movies on FOX TV, they still have to pay licensing fees. And if there are members of the left who criticize both FOX and FOX News as the same, I will call them wrong. (And have done it during the infamous Simpsons/FOX News feud that occurred last year.)
Anonymous

Shepard Smith is gay. He’s never acknowledged it openly, but it’s been basically confirmed by everyone but him. HIs homosexuality is about as certain as Anderson Cooper’s, anyway (who also has never acknowledged it, but it’s pretty obvious).
Anonymous

looked like racial demographics matched up to the real world EXCEPT latino characters.
Anonymous

like the Obama administration right? lol
Guest

How do you know there arn’t. Just because you don’t have a dude wearing eye shadow and a and a set of assless chaps doesn’t mean he’s straight. The key is that you hire someone because they can broadcast the news well, not because they can take an aluminum bat in the rear-end.
http://www.thefriendcenter.com/ SoThere

I thought that Gay’s just wanted to be treated like everyone else in the country. I didn’t know that they kept score. Is it now acceptable to point out Gays on TV? How about on the street?

“TMP”
Guest

I also saw a shortage of amputees, Eskimos, people who are sexually attracted to balloons, and auctioneers represented on FOX news. They must be against all these types of people too.

Welcome everyone to Stupidville. This is the promised land of liberalism when we worry about this stuff.
TruDat

Have you heard of Greg Gutfeld, host of Red Eye and The Five?
http://www.thefriendcenter.com/ SoThere

I don’t see any programs called the “Habib Brothers” or “Dancing with the Burka’s”.

“TMP”
Socal4patrick

Like Sheepherder Smith isn’t gay? Wake up and smell the anus.
Anonymous

Nay Nay, the left won’t ignore it because Fox achieved the highest score. You seem to be confusing Fox news with Fox networks. I mean after all this is the same network that has the Simpsons on.

But lets not facts get in the way of a good hating on the left.

Back to your regular Fox News viewing of discussions on Black people being racist for supporting Obama.
john.kliber

I’m waiting for a TV show where all the characters are gay and the odd straight person is as rare and unwelcome as a vampire.
RACE BAITING@6 RESIST WE MUCH!

MSNBC @ 6AM its called ” Morning Joe”
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_PKEQSTA4WOBYU5Z7QNSBUR2LXI MASSMURDERMEDIA

yes, that was a huge burden for hop sing to carry alone…
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_PKEQSTA4WOBYU5Z7QNSBUR2LXI MASSMURDERMEDIA

greg’s wife has heard of him… but go ahead and believe his shorty-robe-house-boy-lotion schtick…
http://www.thefriendcenter.com/ SoThere

And the leftists keep saying that Fox isn’t fair and balanced. What you’re trying to say ceeza is that Fox is diverse in it’s shows and News programming. You have a funny way of making your point.

OBTW Micky Mouse would be better than Obama, that’s a no brainer.

“TMP”
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_PKEQSTA4WOBYU5Z7QNSBUR2LXI MASSMURDERMEDIA

these percentages pretty much reflect the ethnic breakdown of the population at large… i’m surprised we haven’t heard outrage, although we may, from the likes of al sharpton and sheila jackson lee over the black tv character population falling below the real black population of roughly 12%…

i personally don’t care how closely tv resembles america… praising a network for pandering to your demographic is as useless as criticizing them for lack thereof… if you don’t like how you’re being represented on tv or don’t think you’re represented enough on tv, then get off your ass and produce your own show…
http://societyfordaintydamsels.wordpress.com/ artemesia

Fox seems to want it both ways. They are biviewpoints. That is they are one way in the news, ie anti gay and ;pro gay in their entertainment programs. Both sides are happy, In that way both perspectives are covered. Like you wrote its a win/win for FOX.
Anonymous

Lefty Loons Bash Fox On All Threads – Except Fox Threads !!
Joey

Are you a complete idiot? Fox News isn’t the Fox Network.
Jason

Gutfeld isn’t gay, lol.