GLAAD reports more LGBTQ+ characters than ever before on television
A new GLAAD report finds that there are more LGBTQ+ characters than ever before on television for the 2019-2020 season.
GLAAD’s annual “Where We Are on TV” report was released this past week, and it highlighted the exciting news that the 2019-2020 television season has the highest-ever representation of LGBTQ+ characters over the past 15 years at 10.2 percent. This percentage accounts for 90 series regulars up from last year’s 75.
Recurring queer characters did see a slight drop from 38 to 30 over the past season. However, when including both regular and recurring characters, the number is still up overall.
GLAAD’s report is massive and has numerous fascinating data points to share, including who is doing the best in terms of representation. When looking at which networks lead in LGBTQ+ character inclusion, The CW does the best for broadcast, Showtime does the best for cable, and Netflix does the best for streaming.
GLAAD also examined the specific types of queer representation, finding that bisexual characters make up about a quarter of all queer characters on television, while a little more than 4 percent are transgender. Not surprisingly, asexual representation is the weakest:
"“Asexual representation was cut in half when Freeform’s Shadowhunters came to an end earlier this year. Unfortunately, the only remaining asexual character, Todd Chavez on Netflix’s BoJack Horseman, will also not return next year as the series is headed into its final season.”"
In addition to tracking queer representation, GLAAD’s report also tracks the representation of women, people of color, and people with disabilities to get a better picture of the overall landscape of diversity on television.
The number of female broadcast series regulars seems to have largely held steady over time, only increasing 4 percent in the last 15 years. Conversely, the representation of people of color has nearly doubled in the last fifteen years, now sitting at 47 percent.
People with disabilities may be the most starkly underrepresented, with only 3 percent of broadcast series regulars having a disability. (It’s worth noting that the few shows that are made centering people with disabilities, such as Speechless or Special, rarely last longer than one or two seasons.)
Because GLAAD serves as an advocacy organization with the mission to increase representation of LGBTQ+ people in the media, they set a goal each year with their report:
"“GLAAD is calling on the industry to ensure that 20 percent of series regular characters on primetime scripted broadcast series are LGBTQ by 2025. Further, we would challenge all platforms to make sure that within the next two years, half of LGBTQ characters on every platform are people of color. While broadcast has actually hit this mark two years in a row, cable and streaming have yet to reach this goal. These two steps are key moves towards ensuring that entertainment reflects the world in which it is created and the audience who consumes it.”"
GLAAD’s report, an impressive 40-page document, is worth skimming through at the very least, as a reminder of why representation is important.
"“The role of television in changing hearts and minds has never been more important. Indeed, our nation’s cultural institutions are being called to stand in the gap at this tumultuous time in the history of our movement for full acceptance.”"
While the report shows that this year was record-breaking, 10 percent is still quite low. While shows like Schitt’s Creek, Wynonna Earp, One Day at a Time, and everything Ryan Murphy makes have made huge dents in the landscape for queer representation, there is always room for representation until the media reflects reality. (LGBTQ+ people are everywhere!)
With pivotal LGBTQ civil rights cases pending in the Supreme Court and the trans community in more danger than ever, media is an important outlet for advocacy and catharsis. After reading the report and calling your representatives, know that you can feel good watching another episode of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend or Broad City.