The Gendered Self: LGBTQ+ Narratives in Global Media, Volume I

'The Gendered Self: LGBTQ+ Narratives in Global Media, Volume I' explores how media serves as a powerful arena for visibility, identity formation, and social change. Across global contexts, the chapters uncover how LGBTQ+ lives are framed, celebrated, silenced, or contested in television, film, news, advertising, and digital platforms. Contributors examine themes such as queer infrastructures in cinema, televised celebrations that disrupt tradition, the erasure and recovery of queer histories, and the lived experiences of Indigenous Two-Spirit and Māhū identities. Other chapters address the role of international law in shaping sexual rights, the tensions of representation in Muslim-majority societies, and the ways advertising and talk shows negotiate inclusivity. The volume concludes with a critique of how sitcoms both challenge and reassert patriarchal masculinity. The collection highlights that representation is never neutral. Media can validate identities, expand imaginaries, and amplify marginalized voices, yet it can also perpetuate stereotypes, erase histories, and reinforce exclusion. This volume brings these tensions into focus, revealing how the gendered self emerges at the intersection of culture, politics, and storytelling, and why media remains central to the global struggle for equality.

List of Figures
List of Tables
Introduction: Framing the Gendered Self in Intersectional Media
Tamanna M. Shah
Ohio University
Chapter One
Reinventing Scaffolded Selves: Visual Media Representations of Queer Infrastructures
Cassandra Hayes
Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas
Chapter Two
Queering the New Year: CNN, Anderson Cooper, and Televising a Transgressive Celebration
Bruce E. Drushel
Miami University
Chapter Three
Quest for History: Queer Experiences During the Holocaust
Harsha Singh
University of Delhi
Chapter Four
Self Is Sacred: Media Influences on Two-Spirit And Māhū Identity Through Lived Experiences
Taylor Orcutt
Honors Tutorial College Ohio University
Sarah Liese, MS
Ohio University
Victoria L. LaPoe, Ph.D.
University of Cincinnati Department of Journalism
Chapter Five
Right to Sexual Orientation: Identifying Emerging Jurisprudence from U.N. Treaty Bodies Perspectives
Dr. Sohini Mahapatra
National Law University Odisha
Chapter Six
Framing the LGBTQ+ Community in the Context of a Muslim-Majority Society: An Analysis of Malaysian Media Representation
Kow Kwan Yee
University of Wollongong Malaysia
Mohamed Zaki Samsudin
University of Wollongong Malaysia
Chapter Seven
Beyond the Laughter: The Ellen DeGeneres Show’s Constructive Lens on LGBTQ+ Identities and Mainstream Discourse
Dr. Enakshi Roy
Towson University, Maryland, USA
Terrell Robinson
Towson University, Maryland, USA
Chapter Eight
New Girl: New Masculinity and Reinstatement of Patriarchy
Sheyla Finkelshteyn
University of Kentucky
About the Editors
About the Contributors
Index

Tamanna M. Shah is an Assistant Professor of Instruction in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Ohio University, USA. She is a Curriculum Writing Fellow at Harvard University. She serves as an Experiential Learning Community-of-Practice Fellow and a Global Learning Fellow with the Provost’s Office at Ohio University. She is the Book Reviews Editor for Sociological Research Online. She earned her Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of Utah and holds a Master’s degree in Sociology from Kansas State University and a Bachelor’s degree in Economics. She has conducted field research in Kashmir, India, and East Timor. Her interests include comparative political sociology, gender and race, social change, and inequality. She is the author of 'Children and Youth as "Sites of Resistance" in Armed Conflict' Volumes I and II, which are part of the ASA section on Children and Youth. She has authored several other publications, including “Adjustment to Divorce (Spouses)” for the 'Wiley Blackwell Encyclopedia of Family Studies' and “Chaos and Fear: Creativity and Hope in an Uncertain World” in 'International Sociology.' She has collaborated with the Asian Development Bank on water and sanitation policy papers. (ORCID: 0000-0001-9609-0191)

Sonali Jha is a Ph.D. Candidate at Ohio University in the School of Media Arts and Studies. She holds a Bachelor’s (Banaras Hindu University) and a master’s degree (Central University of Jharkhand) in English Literature from India. Her work as a content writer in the marketing industry has equipped her with practical insights into media dynamics. However, her passion for community engagement truly sets her apart. Sonali’s research focuses on critically analyzing media and social media usage inequalities. She has published research papers on trafficking and migration and is currently working on her dissertation, which focuses on the role of media and intervention programs in combating human trafficking. Her research interests include, but are not limited to, understanding the significance of comedy in raising social awareness, health communication, framing, agnotology, human trafficking, and community-based and action research. Her research aims to create knowledge in service that effectively initiates social change for justice and equity.

Intersectionality, media representation, gendered self, empowerment, social justice, LGBTQ+ Identity