From: MediAction@aol.com Date: Mon, 11 Aug 1997 02:46:29 -0400 (EDT) Subject: "MEDIAlert!" [A] - RESEND, 08.11.97 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- INDEX: "MEDIAlert!" - 08.11.97 [Part "A" ONLY] -ITEM 1: "Fall Repeats: Homo (Non) Sexuality" [ABC, Ellen; UPN; Head Over Heels; Patrick Bristow; Paul Rudnick]. -ITEM 2: "An Uninformed Opinion" [New York Post; CUNY/CLAGS; Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick; Jane Austen and the Masturbating Girl]. - ITEM 3: "Good People" [People Weekly; Andrew Cunanan; Jeffrey Trail]. [Part "B" ("Media/Briefs" and "Web Watch") posted separately]. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- M E D I A l e r t ! ___________________________ August 11, 1997 Al Kielwasser [1] F A L L R E P E A T : H O M O ( N O N ) S E X U A L I T Y Over the past few years, there certainly have been MORE lesbian and gay characters on prime-time television. Yet, in many ways, these images are also MORE OF THE SAME. Despite the recent increase in number, today's lesbian and gay characters share at least one unfortunate trait with their media ancestors -- they are all, oddly, asexual. That trend promises to continue into tomorrow, if the network's Fall plans are any indicator. As television's first lesbian lead moves into the new season, for example, "Ellen" is not likely to get a girlfriend. ABC's entertainment chief, Jamie Tarses, recently told a convention of TV writers that the network plans "to move slowly in developing the Ellen character as an open lesbian" (Reuters/Variety, July 23). "Ellen will, at some point or another, be dating or pursuing relationships, but that is a bit down the line," Tarses explained. "Our feeling is this is a realization that the character has just made, and now must explore making that decision.... It's going to be about baby steps for this character to get comfortable with the decision she's made." In response, one reporter at the convention asked if "Ellen's" audience might "see any baby kisses." "You know, we haven't gotten that far down the line," Tarses replied. In real life, ironically, sitcom star Ellen DeGeneres was able to come out and -- without much deliberation -- "pursue" an open, honest relationship with another actress. As entertainment reporter Andrea Orr points out, however, ABC's homophobic hesitation is typical of most networks -- which have permitted lesbian and gay roles "but have avoided heated controversy by denying those characters much of an on-air sex life" (Reuters, July 23). This Fall, a sitcom for the UPN network -- "Head Over Heels" -- will feature yet another asexual queer. In the new series, openly gay actor Patrick Bristow will play "Ian," a celibate bisexual character. At a recent UPN press party, Bristow explained: "My character has chosen celibacy as the most suitable way of life for himself. Instead of being someone who people try to figure out, 'Is he gay or is he straight?', he's someone who we know has been omni-sexual in his past and has dated and had relationships with both genders. He has a lot of mystery." Kinney Littlefield, a reporter for the Knight-Ridder News Service (August 1), found a simpler explanation in Bristow's tortured excuse. According to Littlefield, "Making Ian's love life past-tense is an easy way to avoid the on-screen conundrum of gay or bisexual romance." Even Bristow has complained that hetero- and homosexual characters "are not equal yet." "I couldn't give an actor playing my partner even really a peck on the check without it raising somebody's eyebrows," he conceded. "And yet, straight people can French-kiss for 15 minutes without taking a breath." Such heterosexist bias is not limited to television, but warps the roles of lesbian and gay film characters as well. A number of Hollywood movies have included a sort of "faux lesbian" sexuality, entirely directed by the masturbatory fantasies of STRAIGHT men. For the most part, however, lesbians and gays on the big screen are not much more sexual than their small-screen counterparts. As screenwriter Paul Rudnick ("Jeffrey") points out, the industry has yet to produce an "openly gay film heartthrob." "Gay characters are usually limited to being comical sidekicks, or deeply noble and tragic characters," according to Rudnick ("New York Post," July 7). Simply put: Hollywood's homosexuals are not very "sexy." Whether in film or television, the unfair restraint placed upon sex, love and romance is especially problematic for lesbian, gay and bisexual characters. A character's whose life is defined by sexual identity is, in effect, denied an identifiable sex life. Especially on television, lesbians and gays are not only rendered sex-less, but essentially love-less as well. Even when they are characters in late prime-time, ADULT HOMOSEXUALS are not permitted to kiss, cuddle or romantically hold hands -- things that HETEROSEXUAL CHILDREN can do on Saturday morning cartoon shows. Something of a "don't show, just tell" policy, this media bias diminishes the liberating capacity of all lesbian and gay characters. Without social or romantic elaboration, even breakthrough portrayals like "Ellen" will become increasingly less innovative -- and more insulting. As long as they are denied fuller lives, the message conveyed by such characters is essentially homophobic. Lesbian and gay love is too sickening to be seen. Along with other critics, media researchers Darelene Hantizis and Valerie Lehr agree that many of the television characters touted as "positive" may actually work toward a negative end. Inasmuch as homosexual desire challenges the most basic precepts of heterosexism, these sex-less media conventions represent "a containment of the threat." Denied relationships with each other, lesbian and gay characters are ultimately deprived of "community." Not coincidentally, it is only through a sense of community that any minority group can convert personal pride into political action -- and challenge the bigotries of an oppressive majority. * * * * ACTION ALERT! Insist that well-intentioned networks finally adopt a fuller (and more equitable) approach to the sex lives of lesbian, gay and bisexual characters. Contact: Mike Sullivan, President, UPN Entertainment, 11800 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90025 (e-mail messages can be sent directly from the UPN web-site, www.upn.com/email2.htm); Jamie Tarses, President, ABC Entertainment, 2040 Avenue of the Stars, Century City, CA 90067, e-mail abcaudr@ccabc.com, web-site www.abc.com (copy any correspondence to ABC Broadcast Standards, 77 W. 66th Street, New York, NY 10023-6201, fax 212-456-2381). [ Re/Sources: "Sexuality Issues in Popular Culture and Media" is one of several annotated bibliographies distributed by the Sex Information and Education Council of the United States; it includes references and resources on AIDS/HIV, youth, gender, and homosexuality (SIECUS, 130 West 42nd Street, Suite 350, New York, NY 10036-7802; this bibliography is also available online, at: www.siecus.org/siecus/pubs/biblio/bibs0016.html). Darlene Hantizis and Valerie Lehr's essay "Whose Desire? - Lesbian (Non)Sexuality and Television's Perpetuation of Hetero/Sexism" appears in "Queer Words/Queer Images" (New York University Press, 1994), an anthology edited by R. Jeffrey Ringer. ] [2] A N U N I N F O R M E D O P I N I O N Recently, an editorial in the "New York Post" (July 27) waxed homophobic on the subject of higher education. Specifically, the newspaper railed against below-average standards at CUNY -- the City University of New York. As evidence of a general academic decline, the editors cited lesbian and gay studies. Such scholarship is akin to idiocy, in the opinion of the "post." Headlined "CUNY's Misplaced Priorities," the editorial begins by noting: "The City University of New York may not be able to turn out teachers who can win state certification, or lawyers who can pass the bar exam. But, according to the 'Village Voice,' it's 'building a department of the hottest queer theorists in the country.'" "The main evidence of this claim is that CUNY's Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies (CLAGS) is bringing to campus this fall Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick, known among other things for delivering a paper to the Modern Language Association entitled 'Jane Austen and the Masturbating Girl,'" the editorial continues. "Whether the university has more surprises up its sleeve remains to be seen.... But we wouldn't be surprised if it did. A convoluted sense of priorities is integral to the decline that CUNY has experienced over the last three decades." The remainder of the editorial takes a roll call of related problems at the university, ranging from "inflated grades" to "open admissions." With pity for "students who will have no real future," the newspaper concludes that: "CUNY continues to fall short in its most basic task -- graduating folks who can function well in the increasingly complex municipal economy." While all homophobia is based in ignorance, the "Post's" editorial is especially stupid. The newspaper advances a stale fear of new ideas -- attacking "queer theorists" with the sort of narrow-minded rhetoric once used against proponents of a round earth. The notion that lesbian and gay studies necessarily diminish or exclude "basic education" has no basis in reason. A course on lesbian and gay literature is still a literature course, after all. Historically, however, heterosexual elites (mostly white, wealthy, and male) have preferred to think only of themselves -- literally -- substituting egomania for education. Even today, most universities overwhelmingly teach what effectively amount to heterosexist courses (if not courses in heterosexism). Yet "straight studies" are seldom cited as the cause or consequence of any academic decline. In faulting lesbian and gay studies, the "Post" commits a classic act of scapegoating. Faced with complex social problems, bigots have always used the media in this way. Rather than search for real solutions, it is easier to blame someone else. In the "Post's" blameful opinion, moreover, it is clear that the editors have not read what they ridicule. Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick has made numerous contributions in the area of lesbian and gay studies (and is an expert in 19th and early 20th century literature as well). Yet, the "Post" is ready to disavow her work on the basis of one paper -- and even then, on the title alone. Ironically, Sedgwick's paper concerns the history and cultural impact of "masturbation phobia" -- the same paranoia exhibited by the "Post." In the opinion of salacious and simple minds, anything that refers to masturbating women must be "pornographic," especially if its attributed to a lesbian academic. Neither the only nor most current of Sedgwick's many essays, "Jane Austen and the Masturbating Girl" first appeared in the Summer 1991 issue of "Critical Inquiry." The paper was subsequently published in an anthology of Sedgwick's work (Duke University Press, 1993), in which she chronicles -- and deflates -- the tendency of journalists to cite the paper's title as "an index of depravity in academe." If editors at the "Post" had bothered to read Sedgwick's book, they might have offered something more original than a dumb repetition of homophobic cliches. In drawing conclusions from titles alone -- to foment sweeping accusations and uninformed blame -- the "Post" finally exhibits the very ignorance it decries. Homophobia and hypocrisy often go hand-in-hand. * * * * ACTION ALERT! Educate the editorial staff; send remedial comments to: Marc Kalech, Managing Editor, "New York Post," 1211 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10036-8790, fax 212-930-8540, e-mail editor@nypostonline.com (or newyorkpost@delphi.com), web-site www.nypostonline.com. [ Re/Sources: The Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies was established in 1991, as the first university-affiliated program of its kind (in the U.S.), "encouraging research on the lives of gay men and lesbians from multicultural, multiracial and feminist perspectives." In addition to a newsletter, CLAGS publishes a directory of lesbian and studies (CLAGS, Graduate School of the City University of New York, 33 West 42 Street, Room 404N, New York, NY 10036-8099, tel./fax 212-642-2924). Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick's anthology "Tendencies" was published in 1993 by Duke University Press, Box 90660, Durham, NC 27708-0660. ] [3] G O O D P E O P L E In the wake of Andrew Cunanan's death, newspapers and magazines remain fixated on the serial killer's life, dwelling in particular on any salacious details -- no matter how irrelevant. As evidence of Cunanan's "obsession" with sadistic sex, for example, media outlets ranging from the "National Enquirer" (August 5) to "Prime-Time Live" (July 30) have circulated photographs of a single S&M videotape -- "Roped & Delivered" -- which Cunanan reportedly owned. Offering something of an alternative to such coverage, a recent issue of "People" magazine (August 11) shifts the focus from "gay murderer" to "murdered gay." The magazine profiles Jeffrey Trail, the first person to be killed by Cunanan. Trail's life is recalled in a personal , four-page memoir -- "One Good Man" -- written by his sister (Candace Parrott) and illustrated with family photographs. "Jeffrey Trail was more than Andrew Cunanan's first victim," the magazine announces, "he was a beloved brother and son who won't be forgotten." To be sure, this article is a loving tribute that attempts to humanize an individual gay person. That effort seems all the more worthy in the wake of widespread reporting on a "homosexual killer" (and the demonizing effect of such media backwash on the entire gay community). "People's" effort is not perfect, however, and the flaws -- however slight -- point to a significant problem in media coverage generally. In the mainstream press, biographical sketches of lesbians and gays tend to favor assimilationist traits over all others -- in terms of both "who" and "what" gets emphasized. Because the conservative and semi-closeted Trail was not out to his parents, the family photos included in "People" show no signs of homosexuality. "Jeff's 1995 Christmas-card photo featured his pet weimaraner Melissa," reads the caption of one picture. Another photograph -- of Trail alone -- is captioned with an explanation that he and Cunanan "were friends, never lovers." Though the article mentions that Trail did have a lover -- Jon Hackett -- there are no photos of him, with or without Jeff, accompanying this piece. Trail is shown with his dog, but not his boyfriend. Of course, Trail's homosexuality is not excluded from "People's" profile. There is no overt attempt at occlusion or denial here. But neither is there any pride. "People" might have titled the article: "One Good GAY Man." But it did not. Before the article ever mentions that Trail was gay, in fact, he is first identified as a "Naval Academy Graduate and Gulf War veteran." As with many well-meaning (and yet heterosexist) accounts, Trail's homosexuality is defended solely on the grounds that it is irrelevant. Being a solider is good. Being gay doesn't matter. When describing homosexuals who happen to be "bad," sexual orientation cannot be emphasized enough -- or so it would seem in the mainstream press. When attempting to portray lesbians and gays as "good" people, however, the media tend to downplay homosexuality -- often to the point of dismissiveness. Obviously, neither extreme is very humane. * * * * ACTION ALERT! "People" deserves supportive praise (for doing better than some), as well as constructive criticism (some things could still be done better). Contact: Norman Pearlstine, Editor-in-Chief, "People," Time & Life Bldg., Rockefeller Center, New York, NY 10020, fax 212-522-0794, e-mail editor@people.com, web-site www.people.com. [End of Part "A"] -------------------------------------------------------------------- ABOUT MEDIALERTS Distributed continuously since 1992 as a community press service, "MEDIAlert!" [TM] is a biweekly action and advocacy-oriented column of media criticism, focused on lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender issues. Recipients may print, publish or post this material, in whole or part, under this or any title, without prior permission. When appropriate, attribution can be made to "Al Kielwasser" and/or "MEDIAlert!" File copies of publications using all or part of any "MEDIAlert!" are always appreciated. Contact: MEDIAlert!, 163 Park Street, San Francisco, CA 94110-5835, voice-mail/fax 415-826-5203, e-mail MediAction@aol.com. -------------------------------------------------------------------- AUTHOR NOTES The editor of "Gay People, Sex and the Media" (New York: Haworth Press), Al Kielwasser's media criticism and research have appeared widely in both mainstream and academic publications; he was twice elected Chair of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation/San Francisco Bay Area.