Freaks Talk Back; Tabloid Talk Shows and Sexual Nonconformity Book

As I'm sure most of you know, I love talk shows and Reality TV, so this book was definitely an interesting read. But for those of you who hate that same media, there's much to examine in Gamson's analysis. So much, in fact, that I think he should write an updated edition now that there's Dr. Phil and other talk show formats. (Or he could examine LGBTQ presentation on Reality TV.) Much of this book shouldn't be a surprise. Yes, guests are often scripted, and sometimes even actors are used to fill slots. Yes, most talk shows focus on the loud and visual in hopes of securing that key youth demographic, which is to the detriment of activists trying to explain that we're not all obnoxious in-your-face queers. (I think this probably has changed, however, with the rise in popularity of Dr. Phil, the Doctors, the View, Ellen, etc. style shows that focus on respectability.) But as Gamson describes, talk shows are a two-headed beast where making the private public can serve to educate by normalizing behavior (any kind of person can be gay) and alienate by demonstrating that queer people are nothing like the average Midwesterner (e.g. loud and proud messy drag queens). I especially enjoyed the analysis surrounding truth-telling and how bisexuals are still denigrated on talk shows because they are seen as promiscuous no matter how often that myth is refuted. Similar issues surround transsexuals as audiences demand rigid gender adhesion to the point where many would rather have a guest come out as gay than as the opposite gender. Lots of great talking points in this book with content interesting enough to hold most non-fiction readers, assuming they're curious about LGBTQ portrayals in mass media.