The Gay Ghetto
By Tom Wines

In the publishing world, there's a term for that dinky, unorganized, poorly-stocked section in every Barnes & Noble, Borders, and Books-A-Million titled Gay/Lesbian Interest. We call it the Gay Ghetto. It's where gay books go to die. In theory, it's there so gay men and women can more easily find books of interest, but the selection is far from interesting in most locations. In recent years, though, I've noticed a shift in the stocking habits of most major bookstores. You won't find Christopher Rice, Brent Hartinger, or even Josh Aterovis in the Gay Ghetto. You'll find our books slipped into the General Fiction, Young Adult, or Mystery sections. Gay books are slowly finding their way onto the mainstream shelves. While it may require a little more effort to find on the part of gay readers, it opens our books to a whole new potential audience. We're busting out of the gay ghetto!

I wish I could say the same was true for gay TV characters. Instead, the television industry seems to be herding us into a brand new Gay Ghetto, created especially for fictional queers on the Boob Tube. 

In October of 2002, I wrote a Heart to Heart column titled "The Case of the Missing Gay Characters." It bemoaned the fact that between the 2001-2002 TV season and the 2002-2003 season, more than two-thirds of the gay characters represented on network stations vanished. We went from 20 gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender characters in the fall of 2001 to only seven in 2002. I'd like to say the situation has improved since then, but the truth is it hasn't. 

In the Spring 2005 network TV schedule, there are only six main or reoccurring gay or lesbian characters on the air: Laura Innes's Kerry on ER, Eric McCormack's Will and Sean Hayes' Jack on Will & Grace, Alex Mapa's Adam on Half & Half, Patrick Breen's George on Kevin Hill, and the only new comer to the bunch, Rick Worthy's Chris on Eyes. You could count Shawn Pyfrom's Andrew Van De Kamp on Desperate Housewives, but the verdict is still out on his true orientation. 

Of course, we're better represented on cable, but unfortunately, cable garners only a fraction of the audience network shows enjoy. We even have LOGO, a new all-gay channel coming this June to a cable provider near you (maybe), but how many people outside the LGBT community will be tuning in? 

This is especially critical in the aftermath of a groundbreaking study from the University of Minnesota. In the study, researchers measured feelings toward gay men before and after college students watched episodes of Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, Will & Grace, and Six Feet Under. Respondents admitted to feeling less homophobia after watching each show. 

According to communications professors Edward Schiappa, Dean Hewes, and graduate student Peter Gregg this phenomenon is due to a form of "contact hypothesis," a mechanism for reducing prejudice through contact between majority and minority groups. While contact hypothesis works through direct interaction, the researchers believe television creates a similar effect. "The more they learned about gay men as a group, the more their attitudes toward gay men moved in a tolerant direction," said lead researcher Schiappa. "The amount of change was greatest among those with little or no prior interpersonal contact with gay men." 

These findings make accurate and positive portrayals of LGBT people on television all the more important. For many people, Will and Jack may be the only gay people they know. 

"Through the medium of television, viewers actually develop a relationship with the characters," Schiappa said, "and this parasocial relationship leads to lessened prejudice." 

Let's take a quick look at what impression viewers may be getting of gay people from the above-mentioned characters. While I only watch two of these shows on a regular basis, Desperate Housewives and Eyes, I have seen all of them at least once. 

ER (NBC) - The lone lesbian on network television, Dr. Kerry Weaver is not the most likeable or sympathetic person. She's been quite unlucky in love, but at least she's fairly three-dimensional. 

Will & Grace (NBC) - There has been much debate over the years about the portrayal of Will Truman and Jack McFarland. There has been much criticism over Will's lack of any long-term boyfriend and Jack's stereotypically shallow man-whore. Still, you can't argue with scientific study results and, apparently, the show has a positive effect on viewers. Personally, I just don't think it's funny anymore. 

Half & Half (UPN) - Okay. I have to confess I've only seen half an episode of this show. Maybe a third. I wasn't impressed. I haven't seen enough to form a fair opinion, but from what I saw, I thought the wonderful Alec Mapa was wasted in a silly, over-the-top role. On the bright-side, at least they have a gay person of color on a show geared towards a minority audience. Baby steps... 

Kevin Hill (UPN) - From the few episodes I've seen, George Weiss, lawyer Kevin Hill's nanny, was well-portrayed. He showed gay mannerisms without being overly-stereotypical, and was often the voice of reason. Overall, I'd say it's a very positive portrayal, albeit in a fairly minor role. Now, if only the delectable Taye Diggs was playing gay in this show... 

Eyes (ABC) - This is one of the most interesting shows to emerge in recent years. It's part of ABC's new brand of smart, sexy, offbeat, morally-ambiguous dramas. Eyes is about an edgy, glossy PI firm. Chris Dideon is a gay African-American senior partner in the firm and a former FBI agent. He's a tough, moral character -- quite a departure from typical TV portrayals of gay men. In a recent episode, he even gained a potential boyfriend in the form of another hunky gay FBI agent. I want to live in this world. 

Desperate Housewives (ABC) - This is the most complicated of all the show with gay characters. Created and co-written by Mark Cherry, a self-described gay conservative, the show does not have the best track record with its gay characters. First, there was the victim: a gay cable repairman who a jealous husband mistakenly believed was having an affair with his wife so he beat the crap out of the guy. Then there was the blackmailer: a young student who tried to blackmail a married woman into sleeping with him so he could prove he wasn't gay. And finally, we have the sociopath: a conflicted teen who blithely commits vehicular manslaughter without a hint of remorse and gleefully plots his mother's destruction. I have to admit, I'm addicted to this corny soap, but I'm still bothered that there are no positive gay characters to be found on Wisteria Lane. 

In the light of the recent study, could the negative representations of gay characters on one of TV's most popular shows have an equally negative effect on people's acceptance of gays? Disturbingly, the media watchdog GLAAD (Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) isn't worried. "It's a soap opera," says GLAAD executive director Joan Garry. "There's probably no better place to have a character like Andrew who's discovering himself. We hope he continues to be as complex and multi-layered as everyone else on Wisteria Lane." 

There is an argument that to have a balanced view, we should be able to have gay and lesbian villains as well as heroes. I agree with that in theory, and maybe if we were a little farther along in the acceptance of gays in the U.S. I'd support that theory a little more. However, as long as the LGBT community is denied basic rights, called evil sinners by major political figures, and treated like second-class citizens, then I think we should demand and expect better representation on television. 

Yes, it's exciting that there are shows like Queer as Folk, The L Word, Six Feet Under, and Nip/Tuck on cable, and it's wonderful that we're getting our own cable channels like Here! and LOGO, but let's not allow all the gay TV characters to be herded in the Gay Ghetto. We're needed elsewhere.

Josh Aterovis is the author of the Killian Kendall Mystery Series as well as numerous columns and articles. He can be reached at Aterovis@comcast.net.


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