The Ugly Modern Family of Betty's GLEE.

what? anyway...We often talk about the media and celebrity portrayal in the sense of role models, for women especially, but also for what's hot, what's elite and what's normal. There have been a few things on television lately that I want to share in case you have missed them. TV has a way of confronting "issues" and social norms kind of subconsciously.

The Emmy award-winning hit Ugly Betty had an incredible episode leading up to the season finale. Background: I have been watching from Season 1 on NetFlix with my roommate and we are not yet caught up. However, I was so excited to hear about this episode that I sacrificed the spoiling effect and watched it anyway! Throughout Ugly Betty, the Editor’s assistant Mark has had a developing story about how he has dealt with his sexual orientation, coming out and how it has affected his life. He has also been a mentor to Betty’s nephew. We’ve followed Justin’s evolution as a teenager, being bullied, made fun of, finding his niche in fashion, and on the second to last episode of Ugly Betty, Justin came out of the closet. I sobbed through the majority of this episode: true story. PFLAG was even mentioned in the episode!

The LA Times wrote a great article HERE on the episode.

"Ugly Betty has definitely helped me cope with issues I would have never been able to cope with if I wasn't a part of a show that has such unique characters," Mark Indelicato (Justin) said. "I think we all feel like Betty at some point in our lives. We feel ugly or like a misfit, and that's why people can relate to Justin -- because he's like that too. They can see that he does feel different and he gets made fun of for the clothes he wears. To see him finally accept and be happy with who he is and who he has become is a great message for any teen to learn from a character, and that's just something that is crazy and great for me."

Watch the Full Episode of Ugly Betty HERE.



And how about GLEE? It's been a phenomenon beyond even what its creators and cast imagined. Kurt, the effeminate, well-dressed tenor, came out to his car-fixin’, grease-wipin’ father on an episode early in the season. Yet another tearjerker! These plot lines have brought a wonderful sense of normalcy to gay teens.

Read the television reviews HERE or watch the segment HERE.


And although I haven’t watched it, I’ve heard nothing but rave reviews: Modern Family.

Today's Modern Family comes in all shapes and sizes. Just ask these three families. Jay recently married Gloria. Now Jay is trying hard to keep up with his much younger and hotter Colombian wife, along with her passionate pre-teen son, Manny. Claire is having a hard time raising her own family. Her husband Phil is great, except that he thinks he's "down" with their three kids, much to all their embarrassment. And, Mitchell and his enthusiastic partner Cameron have just made a major life change by adopting a Vietnamese baby named Lily.