Due to the increase in transgender characters in scripted television and film in the 2010s, trans visibility has been presented as a relatively new phenomenon that has positively shifted the cis society’s acceptance of the trans community. This book counters this claim to assert that such representations actually present limited and harmful characterizations, as they have for decades. To do so, this book analyzes transgender narratives in scripted visual media from the 1960s to 2010s across a variety of genres, including independent and mainstream films and television dramatic series and sitcoms, judging not the veracity of such representations per se but dissecting their transphobia as a constant despite relevant shifts that have improved their veracity and variety. Already ingrained with their own ideological expectations, genres shift the framing of the trans character, particularly the relevance of their gender difference for cisgender characters and society. The popularity of trans characters within certain genres also provides a historical lineage that is examined against the progression of transgender rights activism and corresponding transphobic falsehoods, concluding that this popular medium continues to offer a limited and narrow conception of gender, the variability of the transgender experience, and the range of transgender identities.

Due to the increase in transgender characters in scripted television and film in the 2010s, trans visibility has been presented as a relatively new phenomenon that has positively shifted the cis society’s acceptance of the trans community. This book counters this claim to assert that such representations actually present limited and harmful characterizations, as they have for decades. To do so, this book analyzes transgender narratives in scripted visual media from the 1960s to 2010s across a variety of genres, including independent and mainstream films and television dramatic series and sitcoms, judging not the veracity of such representations per se but dissecting their transphobia as a constant despite relevant shifts that have improved their veracity and variety. Already ingrained with their own ideological expectations, genres shift the framing of the trans character, particularly the relevance of their gender difference for cisgender characters and society. The popularity of trans characters within certain genres also provides a historical lineage that is examined against the progression of transgender rights activism and corresponding transphobic falsehoods, concluding that this popular medium continues to offer a limited and narrow conception of gender, the variability of the transgender experience, and the range of transgender identities.

This volume provides a partial mapping of the ambivalent representational forms and cultural politics that have characterized Latinx identity since the 1990s, looking at literary and popular culture texts, as well as new media expressions. The chapters tackle themes related to the diversity of Latinx culture and experience, as represented in different media the borderland context, issues related to gender and sexuality, the US–Mexico borderland context, and the connections between spatiality and Latinx self-representation—sketching the “now” of Latinx representation and considering that “Latinx” is an unstable signifier, and the present, as well as culture and media, are always in motion.

This book explores how television and streaming services portray transgender characters who identify as male or nonbinary in television media. Transmasculinity on Television takes a closer look at transmasculine and nonbinary characters on broadcast, cable, and streaming services between 2000 and 2021. Significant changes have occurred since the release of the 1999 film Boys Don’t Cry, and in particular through the increase in transgender producers, writers, and actors playing those roles. While a great deal of research has been published on gay, lesbian, and female transgender characters, very little analysis has been done on trans male representation in American media. This book examines the history of how film and television have portrayed transgender characters, how these depictions have developed over time and what impact these representations may have on audience attitudes. This accessible and engaging study is suitable for students and scholars in Gender Studies, Media Studies and LGBTQ Studies.

The Television Studies Reader brings together key writings in the expanding field of television studies, providing an overview of the discipline and addressing issues of industry, genre, audiences, production and ownership, and representation. The Reader charts the ways in which television and television studies are being redefined by new and 'alternative' ways of producing, broadcasting and watching TV, such as cable, satellite and digital broadcasting, home video, internet broadcasting, and interactive TV, as well as exploring the recent boom in genres such as reality TV and docusoaps. It brings together articles from leading international scholars to provide perspectives on television programmes and practices from around the world, acknowledging both television's status as a global medium and the many and varied local contexts of its production and reception. Articles are grouped in seven themed sections, each with an introduction by the editors: Institutions of Television Spaces of Television Modes of Television Making Television Social Representation on Television Watching Television Transforming Television

Gender & Pop Culture provides a foundation for the study of gender, pop culture and media. This comprehensive, interdisciplinary text provides text-book style introductory and concluding chapters written by the editors, seven original contributor chapters on key topics and written in a variety of writing styles, discussion questions, additional resources and more. Coverage includes: - Foundations for studying gender & pop culture (history, theory, methods, key concepts) - Contributor chapters on media and children, advertising, music, television, film, sports, and technology - Ideas for activism and putting this book to use beyond the classroom - Pedagogical Features - Suggestions for further readings on topics covered and international studies of gender and pop culture Gender & Pop Culture was designed with students in mind, to promote reflection and lively discussion. With features found in both textbooks and anthologies, this sleek book can serve as primary or supplemental reading in undergraduate courses across the disciplines that deal with gender, pop culture or media studies. “An important addition to the fields of gender and media studies, this excellent compilation will be useful to students and teachers in a wide range of disciplines. The research is solid, the examples from popular culture are current and interesting, and the conclusions are original and illuminating. It is certain to stimulate self-reflection and lively discussion.” Jean Kilbourne, Ed.D., author, feminist activist and creator of the Killing Us Softly:Advertising’s Image of Women film series “An ideal teaching tool: the introduction is intellectually robust and orients the reader towards a productive engagement with the chapters; the contributions themselves are diverse and broad in terms of the subject matter covered; and the conclusion helps students take what they have learnt beyond the classroom. I can’t wait to make use of it.” Sut Jhally, Professor of Communication, University of Massachusetts at Amherst,Founder & Executive Director, Media Education Foundation Adrienne Trier-Bieniek, Ph.D. is currently an assistant professor of sociology at Valencia College in Orlando, Florida. Her first book, Sing Us a Song, Piano Woman: Female Fans and the Music of Tori Amos (Scarecrow, 2013) addresses the ways women use music to heal after experiencing trauma. www.adriennetrier-bieniek.com Patricia Leavy, Ph.D. is an internationally known scholar and best-selling author, formerly associate professor of sociology and the founding director of gender studies at Stonehill College. She is the author of the acclaimed novels American Circumstance and Low-Fat Love and has published a dozen nonfiction books including Method Meets Art: Arts-Based Research Practice. www.patricialeavy.com

This book presents a critical cultural study of the Trans New Wave as a cinematic genre and explores its emergence in the twenty-first century. Drawing on a diverse range of texts, the cultural, social, aesthetic and ethical implications of the genre are placed within the context of rapidly changing understandings of gender diversity. From the cinematic borderlands of independent film festivals to wider public recognition via digital technologies, the genre encompasses a diverse range of texts from short films, documentaries, experimental films, to feature films and narratives that range across life histories, narratives and themes. The book presents transliteracy as an original theoretical approach to reading film representations of the Trans New Wave, and combines it with a new theoretical concept of cinematic ethnogenesis to investigate how the genre emerged from specific communities and the reciprocal interaction of audiences and texts. This interdisciplinary volume engages with contemporary issues of gender diversity, transgender studies, screen and media studies and film festival studies, and as such will be of great interest to scholars working in these fields and in media and cultural studies more generally.