GLAAD Issues Record Number of 'Excellent' Ratings for TV Networks

GLAAD's annual Network Responsibility Index report tracked the 15 largest television networks to map the quantity, quality, and diversity of images of LGBT people on TV. Find out how each stacked up here.

GLAAD released its eighth annual Network Responsibility Index Wednesday, grading the five biggest broadcast and the 10 biggest cable networks on the images of LGBT people each network depicted during the 2013-2014 TV season.

Nearly 3,000 hours of network prime-time programing and 2,292 hours of cable prime-time programming were examined from June 1, 2013 to May 31, 2014, among 15 cable and broadcast networks. Based on the overall quantity, quality, and diversity of LGBT representation found on each program, a grade was assigned to each network: Excellent, Good, Adequate, or Failing.

For the first time, GLAAD awarded three separate networks with an Excellent rating in the same year, noting an overall improvement in LGBT visibility on TV.

“Television networks are playing a key role in promoting cultural understanding of LGBT lives around the world, and are now producing some of the best LGBT-inclusive programming we've yet seen,” said GLAAD president and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis in a statement. “As they move forward with new programs and storylines, networks must also keep an eye towards diversity and strive to include significant transgender content comparable to those efforts being made by their online competitors, such as Netflix's Orange Is the New Black and Amazon's Transparent.”

On the following pages, see how each network was ranked and rated in GLAAD’s eighth annual Network Responsibility Index.

Pages