This evolution, for the most part, has which has lessened the taboo, and subsequent protest, of representing the LGBTQ+ community on television, and representing them with greater diversity and in increasingly romantic and sexual situations that would have been prohibited in the 1990s, thus lifting restrictions of their representations from either middle to upper-class non-sexual successful white men or stereotypical overly sexually men who are never actually depicted in sexual situations, like the characters in “Men on Film”, to more realistic, nuanced, and diverse LGBTQ+ characters. For example, How to Get Away with Murder, though similar to slumpie targeted program, portrays a variety of LGBTQ+ characters, not just gay white men, and their relationships are consistently present throughout the series, not just a few skits like “Men of Film” in In Living Color. Furthermore, they are presented in more complex, nuanced, and respectful ways, rarely as the punch line, as opposed to the flat stereotypical characters of “Men on Film”. However, it is important to recognize that this programming environment was established in order to promote profitability through the attraction of quality audiences and was only aided by sociopolitical conditions due to the fact that the new liberal conditions decreased homophobic backlash that could negatively affect the program’s
This evolution, for the most part, has which has lessened the taboo, and subsequent protest, of representing the LGBTQ+ community on television, and representing them with greater diversity and in increasingly romantic and sexual situations that would have been prohibited in the 1990s, thus lifting restrictions of their representations from either middle to upper-class non-sexual successful white men or stereotypical overly sexually men who are never actually depicted in sexual situations, like the characters in “Men on Film”, to more realistic, nuanced, and diverse LGBTQ+ characters. For example, How to Get Away with Murder, though similar to slumpie targeted program, portrays a variety of LGBTQ+ characters, not just gay white men, and their relationships are consistently present throughout the series, not just a few skits like “Men of Film” in In Living Color. Furthermore, they are presented in more complex, nuanced, and respectful ways, rarely as the punch line, as opposed to the flat stereotypical characters of “Men on Film”. However, it is important to recognize that this programming environment was established in order to promote profitability through the attraction of quality audiences and was only aided by sociopolitical conditions due to the fact that the new liberal conditions decreased homophobic backlash that could negatively affect the program’s