LOS ANGLES, CA— The lovelorn Kevin Walker on "Brothers & Sisters" and the scheming Marc St. James on "Ugly Betty" have helped make ABC the network with the most prominent gay characters in prime-time television, according to a new report.
ABC, owned by Walt Disney Co., scored highest on the first Network Responsibility Index, which measures quantity, quality and diversity of images of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people on network television.
Compiled by the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, the study ranked CBS, the CW, NBC and FOX after ABC.
GLAAD examined all prime-time programming - 4,693 hours on the five major networks from June 1, 2006, to May 31, 2007.
Each hour was reviewed for any on-screen major or minor LGBT representations, and each network got a grade of excellent, good, fair or failing.
ABC led the way with a "good," as 15 percent of its prime-time programming hours had LGBT representation.
While ABC's LGBT strength came from series regulars, CBS managed to take second place with a strong presence on reality shows including "Amazing Race," "Big Brother" and "Survivor."
—Staff
