After the success of Glee and the popularity of the openly gay character Kurt, it would seem that television is making an effort to be more inclusive to the LGBTQ community. In September of 2012, Glee creator Ryan Murphy released a new sit-com that would attempt to break the boundaries of gender on television even further. The New Normal revolves around a gay couple who are fathering a child via a surrogate. The two protagonists are openly gay, something atypical for American primetime television; gay characters are usually secondary, who, much like Kurt, are used for comedic relief. However, the portrayal of gay characters on The New Normal may not be as liberating for the LGBTQ community as it seems, especially to members of the community who try to break from stereotype.
Social constructions are made up of stereotypes that are rarely ever questioned by the masses. The last blog post discussed the social construction of gender roles in terms of education and workplace. While the social construction of male and female roles in society is certainly a pressing issue, I hope to touch upon the social construction of gay men that is largely reinforced by popular culture, especially in this new series.
In today’s society, the social construction for homosexual men could include that they are sharply dressed, sassy, and are the ideal best friend for any straight woman. In The New Normal, the gay couple, Bryan and David, are two very stereotypical gay men. Bryan is the producer/artistic director of a popular television drama/comedy called Sing (which follows the exact same plot line as Glee). And while David is a popular doctor in the area, he is not just any doctor, he is a gynecologist (the fact that he does not get ‘turned on by his job’ is a running gag throughout the show). Bryan’s behaviour and demeanor is extremely effeminate. He has an over-exaggerated “gay lisp” and dresses like a poster boy for those outlandish and colorful Ralph Lauren outfits. I have many gay friends and I am quite certain than none of them would be caught dead in a pink knitted sweater, especially with a forest green blazer overtop. The only way I can describe Bryan’s appearance is “clownish.” You can tell that the producers are trying to “normalize” gay men through David’s character. He is not as effeminate as Bryan and has a circle of straight male friends; he is even a peewee football coach. However, in the scenes where David is coaching football, he is always wearing a fitted pink polo. Why couldn’t he have been wearing a shirt of any other colour? Are the creators of the show trying to constantly remind us that he isn’t straight?
Needless to say, there are many jokes aimed towards homosexual men and women on The New Normal that just aren’t funny; I am a cisgendered straight female and I find these jabs offensive. It would seem that the producers are trying to ‘make right’ of their disrespect towards the gay characters by offending every other social category as well. The African-American character (whose name is Rocky Rhodes) is under constant scrutiny by the white characters. Motherly figures are seen as a tyrannical force that are not to be taken seriously. As Brian says in this week’s episode: “well that was clever for a mother.” Intersex characters are not as common on television shows as homosexuals, therefore the social construction of intersexed individuals isn’t as clear. The New Normal makes one reference to intersex people: an older gay man tells Bryan that he had a terrible experience with a date he met online. The scene cuts to a shot of a very purposely unappealing man sitting across a dinner table. He smiles, looks towards the camera and says, “by the way, I’m intersex.” The scene cuts back to the main narrative, and the older man gives a shudder. This scene advanced the plot in no way whatsoever and was merely meant as a joke. Labeling intersex characters as ‘freaks’ is not the most effective way to normalize gay men, and by no means is making Black jokes, Asian jokes, women jokes, and any other kind of offensive comments intended as jokes, while at the same time making gay jokes a way to equalize gay people.
Other sit-coms on television also play into the social construction of gay men. Modern Family takes a less satirical approach and is generally more comfortable to watch. However, out of the two men in the gay on-screen couple, the one played by a straight actor is more stereotypically gay than the one played by a gay actor. Straight actors who play gay men such as Modern Family’s Eric Stonestreet are what the acting community refers to as ‘gay for pay,’ which is becoming a popular trend in Hollywood casting. What does this say about the social construction of homosexuals in popular culture and in real life? Does casting a straight man in a gay role de-equalize the homosexual community even more by offering straight men these paying jobs? Why are straight actors who play gay roles exalted so much more than gay actors who play straight?
Here is the football clip from The New Normal: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrGdp8ZG61Q
11rac8
kenzierenee
mika128
rileychung
VicP10
GenderStudies 
I have never seen “The New Normal” but just from your description their depiction of gay men does sound remarkably similar to Modern Family’s. One is more effeminate and outgoing while the other is more restrained. I suppose shows are trying to be careful not to portray gay men as one stereotypical character; but I hope its not having the opposite affect by constricting it to these two characters, one who is a bit outlandish and one who is constantly eye-rolling, with no sort of spectrum. Definitely also interesting to think of this the other way around, gay men playing straight roles. Neil Patrick Harris in “How I Met Your Mother” comes to mind. Obviously supposed to be an exaggerated character but I’ve never heard any sort of complaints of how he portrays a straight man, whereas I know Eric Stonestreet has received some criticism.
Rileychung, I definitely agree with you on the Neil Patrick Harris idea. However (although I do realize that half of the show’s comedy comes from his over-exaggerated “maleness”), I feel like Neil has been instructed to act “overly straight”: there isn’t a episode without a comment on a woman (or women) he’s slept with, how important it is to look rich and powerful, or the stupidity and gullible nature of women. No one complains because it’s hilariously represented and straight men aren’t a misunderstood minority struggling to be taken seriously, but I don’t think any guy wants women to think all men are like Barney.
VicP10, I have a theory about this! I think gay men are often over-looked for gay roles because they aren’t ‘gay enough’, or find it insulting to act ‘more gay’. All the gay men I know (with a couple exceptions) are remarkably ‘normal’ … by which I mean, not: overly effeminate, especially well-dressed, remarkably healthy eaters, or die-hard lovers of Madonna and Britney. I think real gay men just aren’t ‘gay enough’ to match up with society’s view of what a gay man should be/look/act/think like.
Kenzie
I totally agree with your theory! People are saying that more gay men and homosexual issues are being brought up in the media, however, the way they are being brought up can be compared to that of they way women are portrayed in the media. Women are given impossible standards to match up to in order to be desirable and now they are giving impossible standards for men who are gay. This can become very harmful and confusing to young boys trying to figure out what they are attracted to, or if they think they may like other boys but don’t want to act like these stereotypical gay guys then what do they do? Giving these stereotypes of “the gay man” leaves out so many other people and isn’t doing much good, even though it is in the media, it should have a positive, variety of portrayals not just one very effeminate, well-dressed idea of a gay male.
I completely agree! Using the Neil Patrick Harris example: when I first saw NPH being interviewed many years ago, I didn’t know he was gay; he is not what society has constructed as the stereotype for the ‘gay man.’ That being said, Harris has never played a gay character on screen: I agree with what you said about him not “being gay enough” for the mainstream media’s ideal of a gay man.
What an interesting theory! I think your definitely right… mainstream ideas of the “gay man” are usually not actually true…. I think its easier for straight men to act like our society’s depiction of the “gay man” then a gay man that doesn’t necessarily fit the criteria of how a gay man should look, act and think like act “more gay”.
why are intersex people still considered fodder for jokes? if that same joke was made in the context of the individual being of a different race, it would be considered so offensive it would have not made it to air. why is that joke ok when it is directed at intersex individuals?
In my opinion, I think there are two main reasons that it’s “okay” for TV shows to air jokes that are based on gender identification, rather than on race or religion. Firstly, I think it has a lot to do with numbers and familiarity. You are far more likely to personally know a black person, for example, than an intersex person. At the very least, you definitely know if you have a black friend, whereas you may not know if an individual is intersex. So the writers, actors, producers, etc. may feel like they’re insulting someone they know if they make a racially-charged joke on air. The other factor is *lack* of familiarity. People fear what they don’t know. And when you’re scared, the best way to deal with it is to laugh about it. It makes you feel better and everyone else around you as well. And obviously, this isn’t the most productive way to deal with these problems.
I too think familiarity plays a role in this. Before taking GNDS 125, I didn’t know being intersex was possible! It was never something we learned in high school or something I encountered in popular culture. Drawing from the example from our readings of the Olympic athlete, some people who are intersex don’t even know it! Race has been the subject of for years, and television being under scrutiny for being racially correct is not a new thing. I think that once the subject of intersex becomes more talked about (in a positive light), and more intersex people stand up and let their voices be heard (much like those of people of race had in the past), the topic will become more “normalized” and less of a farce on tv.
I agree with Kenzierenee and VicP10 by thinking that familiarity and numbers impact the offensiveness when making fun of individuals of different races or intersex people. Interesex is not something generally discussed or talked about in the media, so watching shows that make fun of intersex people does not generate as much controversy because not as many people are necessarily affected or outraged. Race is something that people are generally raised to understand but intersex is not as generally conversed about as much. I don’t think it’s necessarily okay to joke when it is directed to intersex people, but it just doesn’t create as much of an outrage as opposed to if a show joked about race.