As with any interest group, there exists an agenda. To deny that is to deny the existence of interest groups. The question is how pervasive it is perceived to be. Yeah, you can just turn the channel, but that is becoming harder and harder to do.
You cannot watch TV these days without being subjected to violence, risque (hetero)sexual innuendo, and bad language. This is the logical side effect of being able to throw ratings on TV shows, but as we become more permissive of this stuff as a society, the ratings and warnings become more meaningless. Try tuning into ABC Family and see what supposedly passes for family fare these days. You may watch a sports game and think that's cool to watch with kids...and then the commercials come on and throw a little wrench into your sanctuary.
In the last 15 years, the prevalence of gay characters on TV shows has increased a zillion-fold, to the point where it is now practically expected. Random lesbian chicks on Walking Dead and the totally forced gay angle in HOC (recently mentioned by somebody else on the HOC thread) are recent examples of this. This is why there is a pretty big divide between the young and old on gay issues. It's not because the young are so much smarter or civilized. There was a conscious decision by TV execs to do this, some no doubt to force an "agenda", some to garner ratings, and some for both. Gayness, much like sex, violence, and language, simply can't be avoided anymore, not even on Sesame Street. Call it acceptance, call it indoctrination, call it whatever you like. It is part of the agenda and there comes a point where you can't turn it off or tune it out. Am I going to turn off the TV and pick up a newspaper that reports the same shit? Or ignore both and go on Facebook where I see the same shit? I'd basically have to live like the Unabomber to not be inundated with it.
It's not a matter of being comfortable with sexuality. It's a matter of being brought up to think that you just didn't broach certain subjects. Abortion, rape, incest, etc... All these things have been incorporated into TV shows over the years, often with much controversy because they hit on the same element. People simply aren't comfortable talking about them. That doesn't mean they aren't discussed or dealt with as a reality. It simply means that there is a time and a place for everything.
It's all about degrees. Guys like BBD and Phan don't see that because to them there is no nuance to this issue. To them, any complaining about information overload is an affront to gay rights. It's all or nothing with no room in the middle. Guys like me are apparently out to lunch because I attacked Dale Hansen or because I oppose gay marriage for reasons that just cannot be fathomed by them (perhaps because they can't be lumped into the one-size-fits-all anti-gay agenda that makes for such a great strawman). They're so blinded by the rainbow light that they don't even take note of what I didn't attack-- Michael Sam and his decision to come out.
