A majority of Americans say they believe that members of the LGBTQ community are treated fairly by the media, according to a newly released Hill-HarrisX poll.
The survey, published Tuesday, showed that 57 percent of those surveyed said that LGBTQ people are treated either “somewhat fairly” or “very fairly.” Another 27 percent said the opposite — that the group was treated “somewhat unfairly” or “very unfairly.”
Fifteen percent of those polled said they were unsure.
The survey comes amid renewed attention on LGBTQ representation in the media.
Last weekend, the president and CEO of Hallmark Cards, Inc. reversed a decision made earlier this month to pull four ads that featured a lesbian couple kissing at their wedding.
The executive, Mike Perry, said in a statement that the team at the company behind The Hallmark Channel, Crown Media Family Networks, was “truly sorry for the hurt and disappointment” that the move had caused.
“Said simply, they believe this was the wrong decision,” Perry said. “Our mission is rooted in helping all people connect, celebrate traditions, and be inspired to capture meaningful moments in their lives. Anything that detracts from this purpose is not who we are.”
The company faced backlash from a number of high-profile figures, including South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg, who is running for president and is openly gay.
The Hallmark Channel has faced criticism on multiple fronts over the last month. The decision to initially pull the ads was due in large part to a petition from a conservative group condemning the airing of the ads, which garnered more than 26,000 signatures.
The Hill-HarrisX survey was conducted online among 1,001 registered voters between Nov.1-Dec.1. The margin of error for this poll is plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.
— Tess Bonn
CLARIFICATION: Fred Karger became the first openly gay presidential candidate in 2012, finishing 9th out of 11 candidates. An earlier version of this story said Buttigieg was the first openly gay candidate to run a major presidential campaign.
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