{"id":9757,"date":"2017-08-12T01:00:38","date_gmt":"2017-08-12T01:00:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/?p=9757"},"modified":"2017-08-13T01:03:23","modified_gmt":"2017-08-13T01:03:23","slug":"can-transgender-tv-characters-help-bridge-an-ideological-divide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/can-transgender-tv-characters-help-bridge-an-ideological-divide\/","title":{"rendered":"Can transgender TV characters help bridge an ideological divide?"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Erica L. Rosenthal<\/a>, University of Southern California<\/a><\/em> and Traci Gillig<\/a>, University of Southern California, Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism<\/a><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

In 2014, Time magazine declared American culture had reached a \u201ctransgender tipping point<\/a>,\u201d with transgender people achieving unprecedented media visibility. <\/p>\n

However, in light of recent policy shifts \u2013 such as the White House\u2019s rollback of federal guidelines that supported transgender students<\/a> and Trump\u2019s July 26 Twitter pronouncement<\/a> that the U.S. military will no longer allow transgender service members \u2013 some have questioned<\/a> whether this visibility has actually meant greater acceptance of trans people.<\/p>\n

Studies have shown that entertainment has the power<\/a> to shape attitudes on health and social issues, from organ donation<\/a> to the death penalty<\/a>. But little research has explored the impact of portrayals of transgender people. <\/p>\n

For this reason, we wanted to see how transgender TV characters might influence the attitudes of viewers. Specifically, we tested<\/a> whether political ideology plays a role in how audiences respond to these potentially polarizing depictions. <\/p>\n

Transgender media visibility<\/h2>\n

Time\u2019s \u201ctransgender tipping point\u201d from a few years ago was attributed to fictional trans characters in shows like \u201cTransparent\u201d and \u201cOrange Is the New Black\u201d and news coverage<\/a> of controversial policy issues, such as discrimination lawsuits<\/a> about school bathrooms. In April 2015, nearly 17 million people<\/a> watched Caitlyn Jenner come out as transgender on \u201c20\/20.\u201d <\/p>\n

It was in this context that the USA Network drama \u201cRoyal Pains<\/a>\u201d included a storyline about a fictional transgender teen named Anna who experiences complications while transitioning from male to female. Although Anna\u2019s subplot lasted only 11 minutes, it grappled with numerous issues: the medical profession\u2019s historical treatment of transgender individuals as mentally ill, parental rights regarding adolescent transitions and the risks of hormone replacement therapy.<\/p>\n

We first learned of the upcoming \u201cRoyal Pains\u201d storyline in early 2015, when the show\u2019s writers contacted Hollywood, Health & Society (HH&S), a USC Annenberg-affiliated program that gives entertainment industry professionals accurate and timely information for storylines on health, safety and national security. (Erica is a researcher at HH&S.) <\/p>\n

HH&S facilitated conversations between the writers and an expert in the medical treatment of transgender youth. The resulting June 23, 2015 episode, \u201cThe Prince of Nucleotides,\u201d received a 2016 GLAAD Media Award<\/a>, with transgender activist Nicole Maines<\/a> making her acting debut as Anna.<\/p>\n

Media bubbles<\/h2>\n

Before we could study the impact of Anna\u2019s storyline, we wanted to make sure that the audience was mixed in its views on transgender rights \u2013 in other words, that the show wouldn\u2019t simply be preaching to the choir. <\/p>\n

Since the 2016 U.S. election, countless<\/a> stories<\/a> have explored the \u201cmedia bubbles\u201d in which Americans live. This trend toward fragmentation permeates news, social media and entertainment<\/a>. TV shows with broad audience appeal tend to address hot-button social issues relatively infrequently and superficially<\/a>. Regular viewers of boundary-pushing series, on the other hand, may already be left-leaning<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Research by GLAAD (the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation)<\/a> indicates that transgender characters have appeared primarily on streaming platforms and premium cable channels, while broadcast network shows \u2013 which have larger audiences \u2013 tend to feature transgender characters only in brief storylines, if at all. <\/p>\n

This means viewers disinclined to watch a show like \u201cTransparent,\u201d which features several trans characters, might still encounter such characters in minor storylines in mainstream programs. <\/p>\n

\u201cRoyal Pains\u201d (2009-2016) was about as mainstream as TV gets today. The show had no real history of addressing LGBTQ issues, so Anna\u2019s episode was unlikely to attract a particularly trans-supportive audience. For us, this made it the ideal show to study transgender portrayals and how they might influence viewers across the ideological spectrum.<\/p>\n

Do minor subplots make a difference?<\/h2>\n

Because HH&S had consulted on the storyline, the members of USA Network\u2019s social media team were open to helping us with our study. They posted links to our survey on the show\u2019s official Facebook and Twitter accounts following the episode. We supplemented this sample by recruiting \u201cRoyal Pains\u201d viewers from market research panels. Only those who had seen the episode or one of the two prior episodes were eligible. Of the 488 viewers in our study, 391 had seen Anna\u2019s episode.<\/p>\n

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