How much do you pass by in a day because it has no interest to you due to its irrelevance in your tastes, daily life, or use? You might be out shopping for pens and pass by the rows of standard Bic pens because you want a Pilot pen. At a restaurant, you pay no mind to the vegan options because you love the taste of a well-made steak.
These are just your preferences. There's nothing wrong with them; it's just what you like or need in that moment.
Entertainment works much the same way. You may be an action movie guy, or love the sound of jazz. You may like the plucky comedic sidekick or absolutely hate him. Everyone has different tastes. The issue is that there are some people out there who want their tastes shoved into every creation under the sun, whether a piece of art calls for it or not.
That's GLAAD and activists within the LGBTQ+ community. They seem to think that if a camera is rolling, a gay or transgender person has to be either front and center or somewhere drawing attention. They have to be shoehorned in, whether they should be or not, because to them, story coherence doesn't matter. The only truly important thing is "representation."
Thing is, the "representation" schtick had its day. When DEI was the law of the corporate land, the "representation" was the left's battle cry, but thanks to years of socially oppressive behavior and ruining lives, people decided they were largely done with it, and corporations did what corporations do: They followed suit. They went where the money is.
Now, GLAAD is mad because LGBT characters are starting to become a thing seen less and less on screen, and soon, over 200 are going to disappear over cancellations or characters leaving shows, according to a new GLAAD report:
Streaming continues to dominate the numbers and the conversation in terms of LGBTQ inclusion. This was the only platform to see an increase in LGBTQ characters year-over-year. In only the past two years, both broadcast and cable’s LGBTQ characters have shrunk significantly, broadcast down to 53 from 101 (a 48% decrease) in the 2022-23 season, and cable down to 64 from 139 (a 53% decrease) in the 2022-23 season. With scripted linear television shrinking overall, shows with LGBTQ characters still provide buzz on those networks. ABC’s Abbott Elementary, HBO’s The Last of Us, and Showtime’s Yellowjackets, among others, are LGBTQ-inclusive series on broadcast and cable that have won critical and audience acclaim.
[...]
As has been noted in previous editions of this study, a concerning number of LGBTQ-inclusive series will not return next year. This year, 201 LGBTQ characters (41%) will not return due to series cancellations, endings, a character leaving a show, or limited series. While there are 192 (39%) characters who are on series that have already been renewed, the fate of 96 characters (20%) is still unknown pending official renewal or cancellation decisions. Television is a powerful medium, because these characters grow and evolve over the years, alongside the audience. When so many series are only being greenlit for short runs and the seasons themselves are getting shorter, the potential larger impact of these characters disappears. Less than half of the LGBTQ characters counted appear on renewed series, and with their loss comes a loss of possibility for impact that continues for years with an audience, creating social change.
The thing is, the "representation" reason for having LGBTQ+ characters was never going to be a permanent thing because it couldn't be. Eventually, the money corporations were spending just to pretend to be woke was going to run their bank accounts far lower than they should be because the ROI was more than wanting. The market just wasn't into it.
And that's because most of us aren't into LGBTQ+ lifestyles or displays. It's not homophobia, or transphobia, or whatever phobia they want to label it as. It's just a preference. Personally, I have no emotional connection or interest in the LGBTQ+ community as an individual beyond their cultural effect, and so when an offering for pro-LGBTQ+ programming pops up, I don't click. I'm not interested.
And there are millions of people who feel the same.
Moreover, any clicks that are gotten don't exactly encourage more clicks when LGBTQ+ intrusions whistle at you and snap their fingers in your face while you're trying to enjoy a show about dragons, or crime, or space wars. It's annoying and ruins the experience because now the show is less about the reason I tuned in, and more about me seeing someone else's ideological pet issue that I don't care about.
It'd be like if I walked into a vegan restaurant and just started tossing beef burnt ends into everyone's tofu salads, then when they rightfully get pissed, they hear me come back with "Yeah, well you're just a carnivorophobe."
I think LGBTQ+ activists need to realize that they're not the majority. People, as a general rule, just aren't interested. They can't relate. Gay characters are fine if they fit the needs of the story, but if they don't, then they don't need to be there.
It's that simple.
