Kurt Hummel on Fox’s hit TV show Glee gives fashion makeovers to his girlfriends and dresses up as his idols Beyoncé and Lady Gaga. He’s a stereotype of the gay community frequently found in today’s media—and not the only one. Damien, the effeminate teenager in Mean Girls; Cameron, Mitchell’s bubbly partner on Modern Family; and Marc St. James, the catty fashion assistant on Ugly Betty are all characterized as gay men in touch with their inner divas. Although a portion of the gay community may fit this profile—and there’s nothing wrong with that—it’s important for the audience of today’s popular television shows to understand that not every gay man is a Kurt, Damien, Cameron, or Marc.
            This summer, I chatted with my friend Joanne, who is a senior at Seoul International School this year. We both share a love for television shows and constantly update one another on what we have recently watched. Joanne had just finished an episode of Community titled “Advanced Gay.” She told me that she had watched it with another friend of hers, Jeff, who is homosexual. The comedy show is known to be outrageous in both its plots and characters, so Jeff was not offended by the flamboyant and stereotypical depiction of the gay community. But, he did mention in an exasperated tone how almost every TV show portrays gay men under the same light: men who enjoy prancing around in costumes.
            “Jeff has been my friend for three years, and except in jest, I’ve never heard him say ‘fabulous.’ He’s not a fashion guru. He does not use theatrical hand gestures. He’s like any other teenage boy; he’s on the varsity soccer team and owns an Xbox 360,” Joanne describes her friend with a fond grin. His sexual orientation had not forced him to choose certain hobbies or act in a specific behavior; instead, it is merely a part of who he is.
            While the media may have helped form these stereotypes, the prominence of gay characters in the media has also raised awareness for the LGBT movement. Up until the late 1970s, an openly gay television character could not be found. The number of gay and bisexual characters on scripted broadcast network television has risen in the 2011 fall season to 19 out of nearly 650 roles, according to the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD). GLAAD stated that they will continue to work with the broadcast and cable networks to encourage more LGBT representations on television, and to make those representations fair, accurate, and more diverse.
            Chris Colfer won a Golden Globe and was also nominated twice for an Emmy for his portrayal of Kurt Hummel. The openly gay Kurt has warmed the hearts of millions of viewers regardless of stereotypes, and that alone is a major development. Perhaps Kurt is just the sweet heart Hollywood needs right now, but it’ll be a true breakthrough when we see more than the cliché gay character on our screens.
            The gay community is not one-dimensional; it’s just as diverse as the world we live in. It’d be great to see a broader, more comprehensive range of gay characters in our television shows and movies. The progress towards the acceptance of the entire LGBT community so far has been exceptional, but there are so many more barriers, such as these stereotypical media portrayals, that are yet to be broken.