The Structure Whisperer

gaywrites:

GLAAD has released its annual Where We Are On TV study examining LGBTQ representation on broadcast, cable and streaming television. Here’s an overview:

• LGBTQ characters make up 4.8% of regular characters on broadcast TV
  
• Broadcast platforms showed 43 regular and 28 recurring LGBTQ characters; cable platforms showed 92 regular and 50 recurring LGBTQ characters; streaming platforms (Netflix, Hulu and Amazon) showed 45 regular and 20 recurring LGBTQ characters
• Racial diversity of LGBTQ characters has improved slightly over time, but it’s still not great; about 71% of LGBTQ characters are white
• 16 transgender characters will appear in shows across the three TV platforms (broadcast, cable and streaming); 4 are trans men 
• 1.7% of regular broadcast characters have a disability; that’s the highest number since GLAAD started tracking disability portrayals
• Each platform showed one LGBTQ character with HIV; only one of these characters is considered a series regular
• Gay men represent the majority of LGBTQ characters on broadcast and cable networks; lesbians are the highest represented LGBTQ group on streaming networks
• Since the beginning of 2016, 25 lesbian, bisexual and queer women characters were killed off across networks, a record high 
• There are more black series regular characters on broadcast platforms than ever before; 20% of regular primetime characters are black

I look forward to this report every year, but not because it’s going to be good news. (Anybody else really, really sick of Dead Lesbian Syndrome?) Still, these are interesting findings, and it’s good to know where we are. Thoughts?