Why Are TV Shows With Gay Characters So Homophobic?

Riddle me this Batman. Why is it that TV shows that are so frequently praised for having gay characters are not equally criticized for stereotyping gays? A few years back when the show Ugly Betty was in its prime, it received all sorts of positive attention for its portrayal of gays, but look at who the main gay characters were. One was an assistant named Mark who behaved like a little adolescent girl obsessed about his sartorial situation. And then there was his female boss who treated him like a domineering mother, or rather some well-established woman with her lap dog. What they are trying to imply here I think is that there is some sort of universal stereotype to be applied for all gay men. And then there is Betty's adolescent nephew who not surprisingly (if you watch the show) turns out to be gay, but he too is as predictable as the former. What does he love? Drum roll... you got it: shoes and fashion. What is he terrible at?  You guessed it- sports.

Or what about the show Arrested Development which has found such underground (and now overground) success? This show even boasts an openly gay actress, Portia De Rossi, who is notably married to Ellen Degeneres. But in spite of all of that, the show perpetuates all of the typical negative homosexual stereotypes. For example, one of the central characters named Tobias, though not technically "out" on the show, is presumed to be gay by the rest of the characters. Why? Because beyond making any number of masturbatory references, he is impotent, girly, and utterly ineffectual in everything he does. And furthermore, whenever the other characters in whatever context bring up homosexuality, it is purely as a joke (think sailors and S&M). But this sort of dismissive homophobia is nothing new. In fact, it has been going on ever since shows like Will and Grace set out to "liberate" homosexuals from negative stereotypes. Yet all they wind up doing is perpetuating the mockery.

The real question is: what does all this mean? Are these shows suggesting that the only way to distinguish a homosexual man is by emphasizing his love of shoes and highlighting his adolescent narcissism? Are they afraid that no one would notice the difference between a gay character and straight one, unless the gay one was constantly reminding everyone just how gay he was- with all those not so subtle sexual references? Imagine if every heterosexual character were as randy as Charlie Sheen all the time? Well, that is precisely what practically every single gay male character is like on TV and in movies. It is as if they think that this is the only thing that defines a homosexual. Perhaps now would be  as good a time as any for someone from the homosexual community to come forward and help us to do just that, lest everyone else comes to believe that the only thing that distinguishes a homosexual man is his desire for sex with a man, and his love for shoes.