Today, GLAAD announced the nominees for the 26th Annual GLAAD Media Awards, and the list includes several bisexual-related stories and bi characters who made an impact on the media in 2014.
According to GLAAD's Where We Are on TV report, only 12 regular and recurring characters on 2014-2015 broadcast television are bisexual, compared to 18 lesbian and 35 gay characters. While representation may be low in quantity, several of the characters on the small screen are of a level of quality that's worthy of recognition.
In the Outstanding Drama Series category, BBC America's Orphan Black features bisexual clone and scientist Cosima and her girlfriend Delphine. Game of Throne's Prince Oberyn Martell, also known as the Red Viper, was one of the year's most buzzed about characters, is openly bisexual and embraces his identity. Degrassi on TeenNick includes high school student Imogen and her girlfriend Jack, and ABC's Grey's Anatomy continues to feature series regular and openly bi doctor, Callie Torres.
When it comes to Outstanding Comedy Series, Amazon's groundbreakingTransparent included oldest sibling Sarah Pfefferman, who left her husband for her former girlfriend. Brittany S. Pierce continued to sing and dance on Glee, while Piper dealt with yet another betrayal by her ex-girlfriend in Orange is the New Black's second season.
The Nick News With Linda Ellerbee episode "Coming Out," nominated in Outstanding TV Journalism - Newsmagazine, featured an African-American teen who proudly owned his bisexual identity and broke down some commonly held myths about people who are bi. Also, openly bisexual kicker Conner Mertens' story was told in the Outsports.com piece "Conner Mertens came out to his college football team. Now he comes out publicly," nominated for Outstanding Digital Journalism Article. Autostraddle.com, a blog "for a new generation of kickass lesbian, bisexual & otherwise inclined ladies," is nominated for Outstanding Blog.
Pansexual rapper Angel Haze is nominated in the Outstanding Music Artist category with her record, Dirty Gold. The Electronic Arts/BioWare videogame Dragon Age: Inquisition is being honored with a Special Recognition award for their diverse array of LGBT characters, including Josephine, who is bisexual, and Iron Bull, who is pansexual.
This past year saw many advancements for the bi community, from raising awareness about bisexual health, to getting bi voices to go viral during the first ever #BiWeek, to educating a nationally syndicated advice columnist on bi folks' identity, to standing up for LGBT youth everywhere.
For a complete list of nominees, click here and watch the video below.
The GLAAD Media Awards recognize and honor media for their fair, accurate and inclusive representations of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community and the issues that affect their lives. The GLAAD Media Awards also fund GLAAD's work to amplify stories from the LGBT community and issues that build support for equality.
The GLAAD Media Awards ceremonies will be held in Los Angeles on March 21, 2015 at The Beverly Hilton and in New York on May 9 at the Waldorf Astoria New York. Find out how you can buy tickets or host a table here.
To receive the latest updates on the GLAAD Media Awards, follow @glaad on Twitter and use the hashtag #glaadawards.