I am once again both dismayed, disgusted, and jaded by the so-called "queer television programming" offered by LOGO. Fortunately, the latest train wreck suffered by LOGO wasn't quite as devastating as the A-List, but the network's recent lineup is headed down that path with just as much gusto.
"Setup Squad", the latest nauseating program in LOGO's ever growing ipecac-ian arsenal, aims to bring NYC singles -homo and hetero- out of their shells and integrate them into the New York dating scene. Fine. NYC can be a daunting scene. While I have never been on the dating prowl in NYC, I can't imagine I'd want to jump in that ring. Everyone and everything is bigger and better. There is no margin for error as everything you do, say, eat, drink, and wear is placed under a finely tuned microscope and scrutinized with judgment that would put Pat Roberson to shame. And that's if you're straight.
So, kudos to LOGO for attempting to lend a helping hand to those who are feeling the pressure of the Big Apple; it would certainly be me if I were in the same situation. The problem with this program, however, is that while the show's efforts may be admirable, the execution of their methods becomes both problematic and insulting.
On one of the more recent episodes one of the show's anchors, or wingman as they are noted on the show, attempts to integrate a recently-out Brooklyn man. He was admittedly very shy and ignorant of the NYC gay community and needed a bit of direction but when someone starts swimming, you put floaties on their arms and gently walk them into the shallow end; you don't cut their arms and shove them off the high dive into the deep end with sharks lurking in the depths anxiously awaiting.
So, to bring this young, and classically handsome, gentleman out of the closet, the wingman brings him to Chelsea; talk about wounded body tossed in with the sharks. Of ALL the neighborhoods in NYC to bring him, she dumps him in the warzone.
What becomes problematic here is that this very very naive gentleman knows little to nothing about gay culture and his introduction is likened to that of educating someone on American culture by dumping them in the deep south. His "education" included stops at porn shops, underwear stores, and culminated at Therapy, a chic bar saturated with late 20's/early 30's somethings all living in their own spotlight. My favorite moment occurred while he was at Therapy and was asking advice about how to be "gay" from some locals. Ironically the patrons of the bar were offended that he was using labels and told him if he wanted to feel more accepted he should wear tighter clothing and stop drinking beer and pick up vodka instead. At this point I had to refrain from punching the screen as this was no longer an exercise in educating this poor guy on the do's and don'ts of gay culture, but rather a painfully disgusting attempt at assimilation.
He, justifiably, left the bar feeling painfully out of place and the borgs once again claim victory. I just find it painfully ironic that NYC is supposed to be the cultural hub of the universe and can facilitate and nurture just about any interest, and yet the only lesson learned from this particular situation is that deviating from the norm is simply not welcome.
While I absolutely love everything NYC has to offer and certainly allow myself to fall victim of its seductive nature, I am simultaneously embarrassed by the way NYC gay culture presents itself, and even more devastated by LOGO's continued exploitation of it. What's worse is that the gentleman on Setup Squad met everything with resistance which could have been the result of a variety of reasons: perhaps too much all at once? Or maybe, Chelsea just wasn't appealing to him. Either way, the wingman kept reiterating that "this is gay life."
No, wingman, its not. No, LOGO, its not.
What LOGO needs to remember is that they are placating such a minor part of the gay community. We often wonder why it's so difficult for people to come out of the closet. Immediately we cast blame on unforgiving families or a turbid and bigoted government, but we have to consider what outlets we are offering up in which to come out. Often the criticism made by the gay community of those oppressing it is that gays have often felt like they were manipulated by heteronormative behavior: "think this way. dress this way. act this way." The claims are in fact valid, but LOGO's programming seems painfully hypocritical. Essentially they are just relocating from one manipulatively oppressive closet to another.
All I'm asking, LOGO, is to please consider those of us who do not subscribe to the standard. As a network priding itself on it's progressive television programming, you have an ethical and moral obligation to represent the whole instead of damning us. Now get on it.
"To be nobody-but-yourself in a world which is doing its best, night and day, to make you everybody else -- means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight; and never stop fighting." - ee cummings
