Reality TV World People News   Ratings News   Scheduling News   Application News   Spoiler News
Show Updates   Features & Interviews   Image Gallery   Message Boards   Shows Listing
The Amazing Race  American Idol  America's Got Talent  America's Next Top Model  The Apprentice  The Bachelor  The Bachelorette  Big Brother  The Biggest Loser  The City  Dancing with the Stars  Dirty Jobs  Extreme Makeover  Hell's Kitchen  The Hills  Jon & Kate Plus 8  Mythbusters  Project Runway  The Real Housewives  The Real World  Shark Tank  So You Think You Can Dance  Supernanny  Survivor  Top Chef  Wife Swap                  More Shows 

HOME > Queer Eye For The Straight Guy

Does 'Queer Eye for the Straight Guy' pander to gay stereotypes?


AddThis Feed Button
By Wade Paulsen, 08/26/2003

Much of the discussion regarding Bravo's Queer Eye for the Straight Guy has focused around the idea that the show's popularity will help break down anti-gay stereotypes. But could the show actually be pandering to those stereotypes?

ADVERTISEMENT
This question is raised in an analysis in Hollywood Reporter, which notes that the media buzz about Queer Eye has been that the show sets the stage for the mainstreaming of gays. In fact, a new term, "metrosexuals," has been coined to refer to straight men who, in the words of the Boston Globe, "loves to shop, cook, primp and preen. He uses whiteners, reads InStyle and wears Jil Sander to see the Red Sox. He exfoliates and emulsifies." In other words, metrosexuals are straight men who behave like the "Fab Five."

However, the Hollywood Reporter notes that, despite Queer Eye, the percentage of people opposed to legalizing same-sex unions had increased from 35% in late May to 46% in late July -- hardly consistent with mainstream acceptance of gays. Instead, its theory is that the success of Queer Eye results from the portrayal of the "Fab Five" as a stylish, flamboyant gay stereotype. Said Douglas Ross, the executive producer of Bravo's other gay-themed series Boy Meets Boy, "It's what viewers already assume all gays are like."

Maybe Bravo was telling the truth when it claimed that its target audience was female viewers, not gays ... since the entire metrosexual concept seems to call for a feminization of the male stereotype, as described in this Atlanta Journal-Constitution article. We wouldn't know, since we're still trying to grasp the idea of men wearing Jil Sander to a baseball game.








Take Our User Survey




Page generated in 0.0067548751831055 seconds
About Reality TV World   •   Advertise on Reality TV World  •   Contact Reality TV World  •   Privacy Policy   •   RSS Feed