By Shanna Nielsen

From Queer Eye for the Straight Guy and It's All Relative to Boy Meets Boy and the long-running favorite Will & Grace, some of the biggest networks are presenting a nothing less than flamboyant fall lineup this year, which asks the question: Is America coming out of the closet?

Of these highly talked about programs, Queer Eye for the Straight Guy features a handful of gay men who transform a straight guy based on each of the men's specialties: fashion, interior design, food and wine, grooming or culture.

Another program, It's All Relative, is about a girl growing up with a gay
couple for parents.

With Boy Meets Boy, a series much like ABC's The Bachelor (men only this time, of course), and American Pride, a show in search of the first openly gay country music star, the changes in popular programming haven't gone unnoticed by the creators of reality television either.

"I'm glad to see these kinds of shows," said Heather Kins, a 27-year-old
lesbian from Smithfield. "The media dictates so much over the normalcy of
society. If they show that homosexuality is part of everyday life, then people
won't be so scared of it."

Although gay leading characters reign over this season's schedule, the impact
remains uncertain.

"I think that the growing awareness is good. At the same time, I don't think
people will take us seriously until we get rid of the stereotypes," said Kristie Johnson, a lesbian from North Logan.

The flamboyant, dramatic and promiscuous gay male character that Sean Hayes plays on Will & Grace is one such stereotype, Johnson says.

Although gays in general are coming out of the small screen shadows, Johnson thinks that lesbians are still underrepresented.

"Maybe lesbians just aren't as entertaining as gay guys," Johnson joked.

While Johnson acknowledges that things aren't perfect for gays and lesbians,
they are definitely getting better. Since the gay community has reached several highly publicized milestones recently, most gays, lesbians and supporters would probably agree with Johnson's sentiment.

For example, the Episcopal Church has approved its first gay bishop, the Supreme Court decided to overturn Texas' anti-sodomy law and same-sex wedding announcements have been placed in the New York Times.

"I think it's important to have exposure. The reason why people don't like gay people is because they don't understand it and the more exposure we have, the more people can understand," said Kins.

Whether the new shows will lead to a more open-minded culture remains to be seen. If combined with more education, Johnson thinks they will.

"I think it's important to educate people, but I think there are better ways
to do it than through comedy shows," she said.

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