Apparently the response has been good so they want to have more programming and wider carriage at the launch than a more piecemeal approach. But I wonder if this will turn into a gay ghetto for television. Will Showtime bother with Queer as Folk and The L Word if Logo is around? Will NBC dump “Will & Grace” (as if that’s a bad thing) when people can get their gay fix full time on another network? At least Bravo and Food Network will be safe. They can’t dump the gay talent or they won’t have any shows left. Or is the converse possible, if Logo succeeds will there be more Out of the Closet characters on other shows?
I admit there might be somewhat of a ‘ghettoization’ effect.
But I can’t help but think that it would lead to greater acceptance to have more and varied GLBT portrayals available in the media. Right now it can be largely seen as a token thing to have one on a show. But a network which shows many such folks of varied backgrounds and behaviors will be a step forward.
AFAIK Logo isn’t going to have programming as explicit as QAF so I think there will still be a cable home for that sort of programming outside Logo. It’s going to come down to money like everything always comes down to money. If Logo succeeds then it will foster another mini-boom of gay or pseudo-gay programming elsewhere, which will then fade away in about two seasons amid semi-angtsy Advocate articles about the disappearance of openly gay characters on TV.
Thechannel I want is here!TV which has already launched. I’ve seen tidbits about some of the programs and they sound interesting. And by “interesting” I mean “they have hot scantily-clad men in them.”
Sig-worthy!
Speaking of QaF, Showtime has announced that season 5 will be the last.