In today’s global media landscape, the integration of LGBTQ characters and storylines in children’s television has transformed media representations for young audiences. However, little is known about the way parents evaluate this on-screen presence. By means of interview with 53 Flemish parents, this study uncovered a complex interplay of considerations related to children, media, gender, and sexuality. In terms of possible opportunities associated with LGBTQ characters, parents referred to possibilities of information, socialization, promoting prosocial behavior, and aiding identification. However, parents also harbored some concerns regarding characteristics of the viewers (children’s young age and gender differences) as well as characteristics of these media representations (as to quantity, quality, and physicality between characters). Parents mentioned they were worried about the perceived maturity needed to comprehend what these LGBTQ characters represent, and they showed more discomfort with gender diversity (trans and non-binary characters) than sexual diversity (non-heterosexual characters). They also feared that an overabundance of LGBTQ references might prioritize “political correctness” over authentic representation, which moreover could confuse children.
BlaiseM (2009) “What a girl wants, what a girl needs” Responding to sex, gender, and sexuality in the early childhood classroom. Journal of Research in Childhood Education23(4): 450–460.
2.
BondBJ (2015) The mediating role of self-discrepancies in the relationship between media exposure and well-being among lesbian, gay, and bisexual adolescents. Media Psychology18(1): 51–73.
3.
BondBJComptonBL (2015) Gay on-screen: The relationship between exposure to gay characters on television and heterosexual audiences’ endorsement of gay equality. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media59(4): 717–732.
4.
BorghsPEeckhoutB (2010) LGB rights in Belgium, 1999–2007: A historical survey of a velvet revolution. International Journal of Law, Policy and the Family24(1): 1–28.
5.
BraunVClarkeVHayfieldN, et al. (2019) Thematic Analysis. Singapore: Springer Nature.
6.
ChoiK (2021) Sesame street: Beyond 50. Journal of Children and Media15(4): 1–7.
ClarkeJ (2010) Childhood sexuality: Coming of age. In: KassemDMurphyLTaylorE (eds) Key Issues in Childhood and Youth Studies. London: Routledge, pp.64–72.
9.
DennisJP (2009) The boy who would be queen: Hints and closets on children’s television. Journal of Homosexuality56(6): 738–756.
10.
DewaeleA (2006) De sociale netwerken van holebi’s - Over vriendschap en andere bloedbanden. Doctor, Universiteit Antwerpen. Antwerpen. Available at: https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/1142969/file/1142984 (accessed 6 February 2024).
11.
FlewTIosifidisPSteemersJ (2016) Global media and national policies: The return of the state. In FlewTIosifidisPSteemersJ (eds) Global Media and National Policies. Palgrave Global Media Policy and Business. London: Palgrave Macmillan, pp. 1–15.
GhabrialMA (2017) “Trying to figure out where we belong”: Narratives of racialized sexual minorities on community, identity, discrimination, and health. Sexuality Research and Social Policy14(1): 42–55.
14.
GotzM (2023) Do men create different children’s television than woman?Televizion Digital.
15.
GrossLP (2007) Gideon who will be 25 in the year 2012: Growing up gay today. International Journal of Communication1: 121–138.
16.
HodkinsonP (2011) Media, Culture and Society: An Introduction. London: Sage.
17.
HuijnkWDamenRvan KampenL (2022) LHBT-monitor 2022: De leefsituatie van lesbische, homoseksuele, biseksuele en transgenderpersonen in Nederland. Sociaal en Cultureel Planbureau (SCP).
JaneEA (2015) “Gunter’s a Woman?!”— Doing and undoing gender in cartoon network’s adventure time. Journal of Children and Media9(2): 231–247.
20.
JensenSH (2018) Scandinavian children’s television in the 1970s: An institutionalization of ‘68’. Strenae13(1).
21.
KeyA (2015) A girl worth fighting for: A rhetorical critique of Disney princess Mulan’s bisexuality. Journal of Bisexuality15(2): 268–286.
22.
KennedyZ (2013) “The play’s the thing”: Representations of heteronormative sexuality in a popular children’s TV sitcom. In: CampbellJCarilliT (eds) Queer Media Images: LGBT Perspectives. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, pp.171–183.
23.
KuyperL (2017) LHBT-monitor (2016): Opvattingen en ervaringen van lesbische, homoseksuele, biseksuele en transgenderpersonen. Sociaal en Cultureel planbureau (SCP).
24.
MaresMLAcostaEE (2010) Teaching inclusiveness via TV narratives in the US: Young viewers need help with the message. Journal of Children and Media4(3): 231–247.
25.
MaresMLChenYABondBJ (2023) Mutual socialization during shared media moments: U.S. LGBTQ teens and their parents negotiate identity support. Journal of Communication73(2): 113–125.
26.
MaresMLChenYABondBJ (2021) Mutual influence in LGBTQ teens’ use of media to socialize their parents. Media Psychology25(3): 441–468.
27.
MaresMLPanZ (2013) Effects of sesame street: A meta-analysis of children’s learning in 15 countries. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology34(3): 140–151.
28.
MotmansJBurgwalAVan WieleJ (2023) Genoeg, Enough, Assez. Onderzoek naar de ervaringen met geweld van LGBTI-personen in Vlaanderen.
29.
MotmansJDierckxMMeierP (2017) Beyond the box: A comprehensive study of sexist, homophobic, and transphobic attitudes among the Belgian population. Digest. Journal of Diversity and Gender Studies4(1): 5–34.
PotterASteemersJ (2017) Children’s television in transition: Policies, platforms and production. Media International Australia163(1): 6–12.
32.
PriolettaJ (2020) Patriarchy in the preschool classroom: Examining the effects of developmental ideologies on teachers’ perspectives and practices around play and gender. Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood21(3): 242–252.
RobinsonKH (2008) In the name of ‘childhood innocence’: A discursive exploration of the Moral Panic associated with Childhood and Sexuality. Cultural Studies Review14(2): 113–129.
35.
RobinsonKH (2012) ‘Difficult citizenship’: The precarious relationships between childhood, sexuality and access to knowledge. Sexualities15(3–4): 257–276.
36.
RobinsonKHSmithEDaviesC (2017) Responsibilities, tensions and ways forward: Parents’ perspectives on children’s sexuality education. Sex Education17(3): 333–347.
37.
SnyderALBonusJACingelDP (2023) Representations of LGBQ+ families in young children’s media. Journal of Children and Media17(1): 154–160.
ThorfinnsdottirDJensenHS (2017) Laugh away, he is gay! Heteronormativity and children’s television in Denmark. Journal of Children and Media11(4): 399–416.
40.
VanleeFDhaenensFVan BauwelS (2018) Sexual diversity on the small screen: mapping LGBT+ characters in flemish television fiction (2001–2016). Working papers film & tv studies. Gent: CIMS-Centre for Cinema and Media Studies.
41.
Van WichelenTVerhoevenEHauP (2023) The Genderbread Person: mapping the social media debate about inclusive sexuality education. Sex Education1-17.
