Tony Perkins must be watching a lot of LOGO, as the Family Research Council president appears to be under the impression that gays and lesbians represent close to one out of three characters on TV. “Homosexuals make up 4% of the population, but they’re a whopping 30% of TV characters and storylines,” Perkins maintained on his daily radio commentary today, even though according to GLAAD, “LGBT characters account for 4.4% of scripted series regulars in the 2012-2013 broadcast television schedule.”
The FRC based the commentary on an article in the conservative National Catholic Register criticizing “Hollywood’s powerful homosexual culture.” The 30% figure Perkins cited does not refer to gay characters on TV but to one Catholic screenwriter’s claim that “based on her own experience, [homosexuals] make up 30% of Hollywood’s entertainment industry.”
Not only did Perkins manufacture the “30%” figure, he also alleged that “lovable gay characters” on TV are “make-believe people” whose “dangerous lifestyle is just another funny footnote.” He warned that these gay characters are being used “to desensitize America.”
Perkins asserted that in reality, gays are typically “dying of AIDS” and “bullying kids.”
“Of course, producers don’t show you the reality of homosexuality: the men and women dying of AIDS, or the same-sex couples threatening Christian businesses,” Perkins said. “They don’t cast the Dan Savages bullying kids or the parents kicked out of school for opposing gay curriculum.”
Is marriage headed for a Hollywood ending? Hello, I’m Tony Perkins with the Family Research Council in Washington. The debate over same-sex marriage has been perfectly scripted by Hollywood. Television shows are full of lovable gay characters, whose dangerous lifestyle is just another funny footnote. Unfortunately for America, those make-believe people are having a real-life impact. In a new survey, almost 20% of Americans credit television with changing their minds on same-sex marriage. And that’s no accident. Homosexuals make up 4% of the population, but they’re a whopping 30% of TV characters and storylines. Liberals are using this barrage to desensitize America and viewers are buying it. Of course, producers don’t show you the reality of homosexuality: the men and women dying of AIDS, or the same-sex couples threatening Christian businesses. They don’t cast the Dan Savages bullying kids or the parents kicked out of school for opposing gay curriculum. Like most everything else on TV, it’s fiction. And the only way to fight it is knowing your role in speaking truth!
