FOX Does Big Gay Turnabout. GLAAD Names It Most Inclusive Broadcast Network

This morning The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) released their 16th annual Where We Are On TV report, which is an exhaustive review of scripted LGBT primetime characters in the 2011-2012 television season.

The report concentrates primarily on raw numbers, i.e. what is the "gay headcount" on each network. That's not always the most reliable means to measure LGBT visibility. After all, a few really prominent and multi-dimensional characters -- Kevin on ABC's now canceled Brothers & Sisters, or Lafayette on True Blood for instance -- must surely be worth more than dozens of "barely there" gay characters lurking in the background.

Still, the raw numbers are instructive in spotting general trends, and the most noticeable takeaway in GLAAD's report this year is that FOX has made major strides in increasing diversity on their network. As recently as 2007, GLAAD found zero regular gay characters on FOX. Now they can boast eight, the most of any broadcast network. That may not seem like a lot, but that represents 6.8% of their 117 scripted character total.

Really not bad, and the network is to be commended for the clear shift toward diversity. Here's some other takeaways from GLAAD's report...

• ABC is not in the lead for the first time in six years, and has significantly dropped in its percentage of regular LGBT characters, from 7.2% in 2010 to 3.4% for the upcoming season.

• NBC is in decline for the third year in a row, and will feature three (1.9%) regular LGBT characters out of 154

• The CW has also taken a step back, and will feature only one LGBT series regular characters out of 67 (1.5%). (This dismal showing is quite the enigma since the network targets its programming for younger audiences, presumably the type of audience that would be most accepting of LGBT characters.)

• The broadcast network with the oldest audience demographic, CBS remains in last place for the fourth year in a row. Out of 134 series regular characters, only one will be LGBT (0.7%), but the network will include several LGBT recurring characters.

• Of the 19 announced LGBT regular characters in the 2011-2012 primetime broadcast season, five are people of color (26%), and none will be people with disabilities. Not one LGBT character announced for the new broadcast season will be black or transgender.

Cable Holds Steady

On mainstream cable networks, the number of announced LGBT series regular characters has declined to 28, but will feature an increased number of recurring characters for a total of 54 LGBT characters; a figure similar to last year’s count.

• For the second year in a row, HBO features the greatest number of LGBT characters on cable with 11; seven of which are series regulars.

• Also making a significant contribution to the count are Showtime with ten characters, ABC Family, FX and TeenNick with four characters each, and TNT and BBC America with three.

• For the second year in a row, HBO’s True Blood is one of the most LGBT inclusive programs on television with six characters and is tied this year with the Showtime series Shameless.

GLAAD Also Looks at Race and Gender Diversity

GLAAD also analyzed the race/ethnicity and gender demographics of all 647 series regular characters expected to appear on primetime broadcast television in the upcoming season. Male characters continue to outweigh female characters 56.7% (367) to 43.3% (280) in overall numbers, while 78.2% (506) of all series regular characters are white. Compared to last year, African American representation has decreased from 12.1% to 9.9% (64) while Latino/a representation has increased from 4.9% to 5.6% (36). GLAAD also counted 29 Asian-Pacific Islander characters (4.5%).

People with Diasbilities

For the second year in a row GLAAD has included people with disabilities (PWD) in its overall study of diversity on the broadcast networks. A total of five series regular characters will be PWD, making them just 0.8% of all regular characters, which is one character short of last year’s count.

You can find the fulll report at GLAAD's website.