Laugh it Off: gay men in

contemporary sitcoms

Madison Messer

Elevator Pitch!

Topic: The portrayal of gay men on television

Focus: Sitcoms and their effects on stereotypes

Target: Sitcom viewers and the gay community

Method: Content analysis and survey

Goal: to determine whether gay characters in sitcoms perpetuate or diminish stereotypes

Lit. Review

History of the gay community on television

Television & gay men

Homosexual theories

Influence of gay characters (sitcoms) on viewers

-straight & homosexual

Lit. Review Quotes

“Even when gay characters are portrayed on television, they are often shown in an asexual content” (Fisher et al 2007, 170).

“Since sexual minorities are considered to be on the fringes of society and often ‘objectionable,’ it is best for these types of characters to be left out of the programming, and if they are included, they need to be assimilated in a way that does not bring them unwarranted attention” (Evans 2007, 14).

Modern Family & Will and Grace

Modern Family- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvjgqhvSKmY

Will and Grace- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9J23AqxV2s

Content Analysis

Season 1 of Modern Family, Will and Grace, and Queer as Folk

Yes/No categories

Ex: Gay character uses term “gay”– gay character shown in career – gay character shown with significant other– reference to gay character through femininity by another character

Survey

Survey participants remain anonymous

20 questions (4 answer choices)

Questions genres in relation to stereotypes

Looks at different types of gay characters and participants opinion on which is most entertaining/ least entertaining