THE BRIEF
Though the Gay Community has become more socially accepted through the years as shown through legislation regarding same-sex marriages and Gay Characters on television, there is a large portion of the LGBTQ community that has yet to receive the proper acceptance and representation. While the Trans community has gained visibility in the public eye as they seek equal rights, there is a lack of acceptance from society. This issue is apparent in the mis/ underrepresentation of LGBTQ Characters on television.
SOURCE:
GLAAD’S WHERE ARE WE ON TV 2015 REPORT
The report included a lot of information about multiple demographics but for the purpose of a more focused design i organized my data in order to cover the basics.
INSPIRATION
I was inspired by the color calibration bars that appear on television when signal is lost as well as the static that appears. These images symbolize what the data is about. In a sense the media musr recalibrate their definitions of normal in order to create a more diverse representation. I felt that the colors would be an alternate direction to the generic rainbow when refering to LGBTQ identities.
COLOR
For the color scheme, i wanted to stay away from the generic rainbow colors that rebresent the LGBTQ community. Instead, I pulled colors from the TV color calibration bars. These colors symbolize the need for change in how the LGBTQ community is representedon television.
FONTS
I chose two sans-serif fonts for the poster. I considered the 30 x 40 size of the poster when choosing fonts. Bebas for titles and headers, and Gotham for copy. The condensed nature of Bebas creates a feeling of standing tall and proud, while the harmonious and symmetric gotham represents equality.
FINDINGS
All three programming platforms need to include more racially diverse LGBT characters. Overall racial diversity is moving in the right direction with 33% (287) of 881 regular characters counted on broadcast programming being people of color, which is a six-point increase from last year.
TREE MAP
While we are seeing a growth in the presence of LGBTQ Characters on television, a sense of diversity is missing when examining character demographics such as sexual orientation, gender identity, and race/ethnicity. The GLAAD Where are We on TV 2015 Annual Report brings awareness to this issue as they shift the focus onto underrepresentation of diverse LGBTQ stories.
