http://c.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f9/24555130001?isVid=1&publisherID=24489591001
America, you’re so fickle.
You loved him for four years as Doogie Howser, M.D. You loved him in “Starship Troopers.” You’ve loved him for the past five years in “How I Met Your Mother.” And you loved him last night as the host of the Emmys.
But thirty-six year old Neil Patrick Harris loves David Burtka, and you’re not so cool with that.
Why, America, why?
Our so-called “national conversation about race,” which we’ve never truly had, needs to happen. And it needs to include all levels and facets of the diverse human condition, including homosexuality.
Last night’s Emmys were a tribute to an amazingly talented, passionate, and often humble collection of artists. But they were also a tribute to America’s continued racism, homophobia, and sexism. And a few other “isms,” no doubt.
I noticed as the award for “Outstanding Writing For A Variety, Music Or Comedy Series” was being given, that almost every writer on all five shows (Late Night With Conan O’Brien, Late Show With David Letterman, Saturday Night Live, The Colbert Report, and The Daily Show With Jon Stewart) was a white male. Via Twitter, a friend told me she had counted six women out of sixty-five total names. The show that won, The Daily Show With Jon Stewart, actually has the most diverse staff, I believe. Maybe there’s a lesson there.
The networks may try to give us a cross-section of what they can bear to think (while they cringe) they can portray as who America is. All 317 million of us. But 317 million is a lot of folks. And we include probably every “ism” under the sun. And no way are most represented.
What we see on-screen may bear a tiny resemblance to the real America. What we see behind the cameras looks like anything but.
The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) probably does the best job in gaining inclusion for us in the media. But here’s the title of GLAAD’s latest press release:
“GLAAD COMMENDS FOX FOR INCLUSION OF SAME-SEX COUPLE ON “SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE†FOLLOWING MEETING WITH GLAAD”
Wow. A same-sex couple on a show about… wait for it: dancing. As stereotypes go, hardly ground-breaking. I imagine fifty or sixty years ago a similar scenario would have been a show about dancing including a black couple. Seriously, folks! It’s the twenty-first century!
(Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m glad GLAAD was able to achieve this. But why did they even have to try?)
So, things are getting better, right?
Well, in a word, no.
Via GLAAD:
“At the launch of the 2008-2009 television season, GLAAD estimates that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) scripted characters represent 2.6% of all scripted series regular characters on the five broadcast networks: ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC, and The CW. This is nearly double last year, with 16 series regular characters identified as LGBT.
“In contrast, the number of LGBT series regular characters found on scripted programming on mainstream cable networks has decreased from last year’s analysis, from 40 to 32. The presence of LGBT-focused cable networks here! and Logo, which program specifically for LGBT viewers, add additional representations. These two networks alone will provide 39 additional series regular LGBT characters, more than all of the other cable networks combined.”
Read that again, and stop when you get to “nearly double.” Nearly double?
No wonder it feels like for every state in which we win marriage, we have to go back and fight for it again. We’re not represented in the media, and those of us who are in the media are often playing roles of those not ourselves. It’s called acting. And it’s called working. And it’s fine, but at the end of the day, at the end of all those credits, it would be nice if maybe there was one that said, “This show was brought to you by people, some of whom are LGBTQ.”
The LGBTQ community is diverse. And we fuel the very industries the Emmys, the Oscars, and the Tonys herald.
So, why is it OK for Neil Patrick Harris to win America’s heart, but not be able to marry the man who won his?