Transgender Representation in the Media

The transgender community has definitely had its time in the spotlight this past year. Whether it be Caitlyn Jenner publicly sharing her journey of transitioning from male to female physically, or TV shows on ABC Family about transgender people, it has become more commonly known. Growing up, I never knew you could be anything but cisgender. I never knew that someone could be one gender physically, but another emotionally. I blame this lack of awareness on the media.

For many years the media only showed straight, cisgender people on their networks. My world as a child was simply this: If you look like a boy, you were a boy. If you looked like a girl, you were a girl. This was in no way my parent’s fault, as many people may assume. My parents raised me to be open minded. Once I was introduced to the fact that sometimes girls like girls or boys like boys, or that the way a person looks does not make their gender, I didn’t question it. However, I did not know about the trans community until fairly recently. I only learned that transgender was a thing in the 7^th grade, when a friend of mine told me about her transgender friend.

Caitlyn Jenner may have brought a lot of awareness to the trans people, but what they didn’t show is the more difficult side of gender discussions. The media never talked about the things that really mattered. It wasn’t the fact that Caitlyn looked gorgeous, that her family accepted her, or any of that. What they should have shown was how transgender people are struggling on a daily basis in today’s society.

Since 2002, GLAAD Media has documented 102 television episodes (note: NOT series) that have involved transgender people. 54% of these episodes were noted to be a negative representation, 35% ranged from problematic to good, and only 12% were a fair representation of transgenders. Almost 14 years now, and there have only been 102 episodes. That’s about 7 episodes a year. Out of the thousands upon thousands of television shows premiered each year, only 7 of them on average had a transgender character, and only 1 of them on average would have had a positive depiction of them. The transgender representation in the media is lacking. Growing up unaware that it’s completely okay to be transgender and not even being aware that transgender is a real thing can ruin a trans child. If they grow up seeing their favorite cartoon characters always being a straight, cisgender person, they will think something is wrong with them.

There is absolutely more representation now than there was for the past 14 years. Shows like I Am Jazz and Becoming Us on TLC and ABC Family have definitely spread awareness on how it is to be transgender in today’s society. These are some of the few shows that are speaking to an older generation as well as younger.

There’s a lot more information available to the younger generation than there is for our elders. From the trans Youtube sensation, Gigi Gorgeous, to Caitlyn Jenner taking over every aspect of the media, we’re being informed one way or another. These people are showing us that being trans is in no way a bad thing nor does it shape who a person is. It’s just life for them and we learn to accept it.

So is the transgender representation in the media okay? Well, it’s definitely improving. There are a lot more cisgender people taking lead roles and getting their “big breaks,” but we’re moving forward. With each generation we grow more accepting. We’re getting there. It may be a while until we have more variety in the media, but it’s looking up.