Media - boon or bane?

Dec 14, 20213 min read

Updated: Feb 11, 2022

Kaashvi Sheoran

The media's coverage of the LGBTQ+ community has grown in recent years. It has had a significant impact on how society perceives the community. The media's portrayal can be both beneficial and harmful. Compared to the twentieth century, there was little queer representation in the media. It was frequently characterised by the dangerous and damaging preconceptions and stereotypes surrounding the queer population. And though media representation has improved over the last few decades, it still remains slow and ineffective. Even now, expression takes numerous forms, and it isn't necessarily positive; it may even be offensive. Representation is challenging to comprehend and deconstruct since it is difficult to convey that variety and desired effects are not always achieved. Since each member of the queer community has a different experience, queer representation must become more inclusive to genuinely reflect the community's diversity.

Viewing LGBT+ representation in the media (shows, movies, etc.) has dramatically raised the queer acceptance rate, according to a study done in 2015 and followed by a survey by GLAAD and P&G in 2020. Media exposure has a more significant impact than we realise since it helps deconstruct myths and clichés about the LGBT+ community while also providing support, reassuring them that they are not alone but rather part of a large community where everyone is valued and welcome. The increasing representation promotes the notion of open-mindedness, allowing individuals, especially the older generation, to better understand and normalise the community's existence. There has been an increase in support and acceptance in recent years, particularly among the youth, who have had more media exposure than the older generations. For example, Sam Smith, a musician, recently came out as non-binary with pronouns they/them. Another singer, Demi Lovato, came out as non-binary. The impact on the youth is significant as it helps them understand and become more accepting and supportive of their idol and others. It's the media exposure from older shows like 'Will and Grace' and 'Modern Family,' as well as newer shows like 'Elite,' 'How to Get Away With Murder,' and others, which have boosted representation of the LGBTQ+ community, resulting in awareness, knowledge and support. Exposure from these shows has led to the audience being more comfortable with the community and more accepting and supporting, be it of the characters on screen or people in real life. These shows have helped create a positive mindset about these characters.

These are some examples of beneficial media coverage, although the media also has a negative side. This side comprises myths and stereotypes that hurt the audience, making queer people feel humiliated and devalued to an age-old story and adversely affecting the audience and leading them to believe that this is the community's general reality. For example, the Guardian Angel, a Chinese drama, depicts a gay character who is a paedophile spreading STDs to children, leading to unfavourable prejudice in the audience. Similar misconceptions of 'who is the guy/girl in the relationship,' as seen in different media, and stereotypes about bisexuals, transgender persons, and other people negatively influence the audience and the queer community. Queerbaiting occurs in Glee, where Rachel and Quinn's relationship is more of a marketing ploy to attract the queer community, which is seeking representation but isn't receiving it. This method helps the creators make a profit and is intended to captivate the viewers without presenting an authentic depiction of the LGBT+ characters. Token representation is used to attract viewers from the LGBT+ community and increase revenue without providing meaningful representation and purpose to the queer characters. Token representation may be seen in Star Wars, Beauty and the Beast, and others.

Individuals in the queer community, on the other hand, can use media representation to help them identify themselves, strengthen self-identity, and feel like a part of the greater community. The audience can understand both themselves (the queer community) and their loved ones (part of the queer community) better when witnessing this. The media portrays the community and normalises them as ordinary people, which may help the audience understand why they should not be treated harshly or unfairly in any circumstance.

For the LGBT+ community, media can be either a boon or a bane since it has both negative and positive outcomes. It is undeniable that queer media representation is intricately linked to public perceptions of the community, emphasising the importance of representation for both viewers and the community. We have seen tremendous progress in media representation of the LGBT+ community in contrast to the twentieth century over the decades. Still, there is always room for additional growth and diversity. Stereotypes, token representations, queer baiting, and a lack of expression are all fading with time. Idealistic queer media representation has emerged, which plays a constructive role in influencing the audience and portraying the entire community positively, making it feel welcoming and supportive to the LGBT+ community.

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Media - boon or bane?

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