Homosexuality in Television Essay

It is often said that the media and the arts are an accurate reflection of any given community. This is especially true in American pop-culture, where television shows depict the various stereotypes attributed to men and women and the roles they play in society. House, a highly popular medical drama that revolves around Dr. Gregory House and his diagnostic team, is a particularly good example as it represents the true state of the traditional gender roles in American culture today by, both, redefining and reinforcing them over the course of the show.

As the years have gone by, you can see the change of how gays and lesbians are widely seen in mostly every tv show or movie in today’s society. This is something most of our own parents didn’t even grow up seeing gays throughout the media. Living in today’s time period, you’re able to see how the influence has changed the way people see gays and lesbians. The nation has become more accepting of the gay and lesbian culture verses back in the days of when our parents and even grandparents were our age. Not only was is rare to see homosexuals on television, it was portrayed negatively, and now you can see it portrayed positively.

This episode is very controversial because it has to do with certain members of a society who are born with the ability to engage in sexual intercourse mentally. Similarly, homosexuals in real life are sometimes believed to be born attracted to the same sex and are therefore the only ones who behave in a strange manner. Because of that, people who are homosexual often experience discrimination, just as the characters in the episode do.

The 1970s was considered the “Me Decade” because of the increasing amount of individuality that people were beginning to exhibit. Americans started discussing important issues, such as divorce and gender roles but remained silent on the subject of sexuality. One of the reasons was because television in the 20th century hardly mentioned homosexuality. The idea was considered taboo, and many Americans were not comfortable or familiar with this issue, much less talking about it. In recent decades, Americans have made tremendous progress towards the acceptance of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people in just forty years because of the television programs that have introduced Americans to these types of people. Many of the individuals that belong to either one of these categories have long struggled for equality and respect, just as other minorities have in the past, and continue to do so. Although American culture is more focused on individuality than conformity in today's times, the idea of what is “normal” is still an issue for many people. However, more television programs are bringing awareness to the idea of homosexuality, which makes for the gradual acceptance of it. The increasing amount of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender characters portrayed on television programs in today’s society has helped change the views of many Americans into embracing gay individuals into their lives. People are also more accepting of same-sex relationships or marriages and are

    The form of communication created by the television is not only a part of how our modern society communicates, but is has changed public discourse to the point that it has completely redefined it, argued Neil Postman in his convincing book Amusing Ourselves to Death. He viewed this as very harmful, and additionally so because our society is ignorant of it as they quickly becomes engulfed in its epistemology. When faced with the question about whether the television shapes or reflects culture, Postman pointed out that it is no longer applicable because "television has gradually become our culture" (79). What kind of culture is this? Postman warned that it is one in which we

There is a fine line between expressing your personal opinion and verbally criticizing others. However, when it comes down to it, what was Phil Robertson, the “dad of Duck Dynasty,” really doing? “My mission today is to go forth and tell people about why I follow Christ and also what the bible teaches, and part of the teaching is that women and men are meant to be together,” he stated. Personally, I believe that Phil Robertson was being brutally honest and I see no issue with that. Arts & Entertainment (A&E) cannot punish him for his personal beliefs. Quite frankly, I think it was an unintelligent move on their part to ask a man of God, such as Phil, what his belief was on gay marriage. What else would you have expected him to say?

The intent of this film I think is unmistakable: to instruct educators in how to introduce gay issues in their classrooms in a way that promotes acceptance of homosexuality as a lifestyle choice. As one teacher in the film stated, schools must provide education in gay issues in order to create good citizens, increase student's confidence, and provide them with supportive individuals. Particularly interesting is the beginning of the film, in which juxtaposition is shown between Senator Robert Smith talking about gays and gay awareness in schools as filth and trash, and a group of younger students discussing homosexuality with a seemingly inherent sense of fairness and democracy that is quite mature for their age. One child in fact mentions that those who oppose homosexuals would not want to be discriminated against if they were in the same situation. I thought it was also a strength of the film to focus on how most children are affected by homophobic prejudice in some way, be it through the media, their home, or their friends. Some of the children, I'm guessing third

In the current society that we live in, there are many things that help shape our perception of sexual identity. In the discussion with the class, there was a consensus that family, media, religion were the major influencers on how we develop our sexual identities and how we view other’s sexual identity. From childhood, most of us are shaped by the view of our parents and often follow the same principles and views at them. Though many people usually divert from this thought process, it still serves as a foundation for our future views and principles, whether we agree with our parents or not. Going through our individual groups discussions, many people in my group felt that a large part of their perception about the LGBT community came from the media and how the community was portrayed in the media. We discussed that in our childhoods we were often presented with gay characters that were often very flamboyant, feminine

Popular culture is the artistic and creative expression in entertainment and style that appeals to society as whole. It includes music, film, sports, painting, sculpture, and even photography. It can be diffused in many ways, but one of the most powerful and effective ways to address society is through film and television. Broadcasting, radio and television are the primary means by which information and entertainment are delivered to the public in virtually every nation around the world, and they have become a crucial instrument of modern social and political organization. Most of today’s television programming genres are derived from earlier media such as stage, cinema and radio. In the area of comedy, sitcoms have proven

their culture. Television over the years has molded the minds of its viewers – young and

Bisexual. Gay. Lesbian. These are all words that in today’s society are becoming more and more common to hear. Although just a few years ago hearing these words might have shocked some and angered many, they are becoming a part of today’s norm. People are broadening their views on sexuality and the possibilities open to them. Being bisexual, gay, or lesbian is slowly becoming accepted. On television a few years ago, a comedic sitcom Ellen attempted to make gays even more accepted by casting the main character as a gay woman. Sadly, Ellen failed because viewers weren’t ready for gays to be seen in a comfortable TV setting. The idea was too new and the show was before

Gay’s is something many people do not agree on. It has through the country for a spin, the hate, violence, and eventually equality. John found out when the pastor ask for any confessions later in the sermon just like every Sunday that his son stood up and admitted that he was gay. John didn’t know what to do. Stacey didn’t laugh or jump up and down she gave him advice and John someone would had hated gay people, and didn’t understand the situation has been ushered into the same shoes that Stacey had been. It doesn’t matter who you’re, what your name is, or how much money you make, you’re equal to the person next to you. People are entitled to their opinion and moral standards, but that should be kept to themselves. “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.” –Martin Luther King Jr. People should not be judged by the color of their skin, same goes with sexuality, it should be judged by the kind of person they are, how they leave an impact on the world. I leave a challenge to the reader, what impact will you leave on the world, positive or

In spite of the company’s successful plans for the new theme park in Florida it did run into some issues with some guest not agreeing with the company allowing gay people to have a special day. According to Nicholas Confessore he said “Flip the political calendar back to 1997:led by the Southern Baptist Convention, social conservatives targeted the Walt Disney Corporations with a nationwide boycott in response to, among other sins, condoning “Gay Day” at Walt Disney World, having relatively gay-friendly corporate policies, and producing the sitcom Ellen.” This shows that the Disney Company had a problem at Walt Disney World, when they wanted to give a group that is often frowned upon a day to enjoy themselves with people who act like each other.

Can T.V. shows be the reflection of our society or influence the behavior of the members of our community? Since 1936 when television broadcasting begin, it priority was to inform and to entertain our society; subsequently, a massive amount of rules and regulations were created to control the material presented in TV, which principal goal was to safeguard the moral and ethical standards of it time. Nevertheless, from its beginning to the present home entertainment television standards contents have change; likewise, the moral an ethics values of our society have change and continuing changing from generation to generation. TV shows from the 50’s, 80’s, and the present exposed many changes in the way human role are exposed, the language

Television can be considered a cultural forum. By cultural forum, this means issues and points of view can be discussed openly and almost without punishment. These issues can vary anywhere from male dominance in the household, to wars, to racism, to political jabs and still be covered under freedom of speech. Television can hold a wide variety of opinions which may offend, but for the most part due so to prove a point.