Race, Gender, and Sexual Orientation Representation Throughout America's Next Top Model

     Over the past twenty cycles America's Next Top Model has worked and altered their cast and crew in order to appeal to a wider audience all around. They have slowly been expanding the range of individuals who appear throughout each season in order to present a variety of people, all with different backgrounds and stories. This helps the contestants relate more closely with the variety of people that make up their viewers or audience. From the beginning of the seasons, there have been a range of people who have appeared on this show in a positive light, and have transformed and grew in a positive way. America's Next Top Model has created a wider fan base from their open-mindedness, and positive outlook for all contestants on their show, regardless of race, gender, or sexual orientation.

     From cycle one, Tyra banks has casted young women of all different races, there have been white women, African-Americans, Asians, Hispanics, and so on. From the races represented through the seasons Tyra has made it evident that each women represented the race which she identified with. Tyra even often appeared to sympathize and relate to those women who shared her racial background of being African-American. However, regardless of race, Tyra has always made it clear that your race is not a deficit throughout this competition or industry, but instead that your race creates your overall brand. Hasinoff stated, “I argue that the abundance of discourses about feminine racialization on America's Next Top Model signals a new neoliberal rhetoric of race in popular culture in which instead of silently and superficially representing racial difference, the show's explicit discussions about race and racialized identity transformations are promoted as a valuable commodity” (Fashioning Race for the Free Market on America's Next Top Model). Overall, I agree with this statement because it is clear that for America's Next Top Model judges this range of racial backgrounds was often promoted as being “exotic” and valuable.

     Although Tyra often would relate physical traits, due to race or not, back to their overall success in their photographs, there was never any talking down or advantages throughout the competition due to racial backgrounds. They often portrayed all contestants as equal and all just as capable of being successful in the industry. With that being said, they did not hold back from showing these majority or minority women's true colors. One blog stated that, “Even though African Americans are perceived as being “exotic” on the show, this positive imagery is juxtaposed by negative images such as when black contestants are shown fighting and getting into cat fights with one another” (Racial Representations in America’s Next Top Model). This was true throughout each season, as they did not feel as though they needed to make these women's true personalities to the viewers.

     Aside from racial backgrounds, for the first nineteen seasons only women were allowed to compete in the cycles of America's Next Top Model. While there was never any indication as to why these rules were in play, they often casted women who identified as being bi-sexual, homosexual, and transgendered. Sexual orientation was never discriminated against or looked down upon throughout the series of cycles. Beginning with the cast members, there were commonly individuals who identified with being homosexual present throughout the first nineteen seasons such as Jay Manuel (photo shoot director) and J. Alexander (runway coach). It is commonly recognized that the modeling industry is a common setting for individuals who identify closely with being transgendered, bi-sexual, or homosexual. This relates with Loverudes article where she states, “Tyra repeatedly emphasizes the importance of gay men in the industry and encourages the contestants on ANTM to value their contributions. She wants the women to appreciate every person who works in fashion, regardless of sexuality” ("America's Next Top Model Is...": Enforcing or Resisting Hegemonic Heterosexuality). It is an industry where these individuals are welcome and able to express themselves freely and be proud about who they are. Alongside the cast members they had a large number of girls as contestants who identified strongly and openly with being bi-sexual or homo-sexual.

     In the newest season, cycle twenty there was a change withing the casting rules and girls and guys were both allowed to compete. In this season the ability for men to compete made this season more appealing to men. Within this season there was strangely only one person who identified as being homosexual, and it was Corey, an extremely androgynous male who expressed himself openly, and was proud of his feminine brand. However, throughout the season it was constantly a critique that Corey needed to be able to appear more masculine for the photo shoots that required it. Although Corey was constantly critiqued for his lack of masculinity within his photos, mostly by the only male model on the panel of judges, he still pushed through and made it to the top three. He was eliminated right before the final runway show. After he was eliminated he stated in his interview that he was glad that he got this opportunity, but was excited to be able to just be his “fierce” self from now on in his hopeful modeling career. Aside from males, there have been two women who identified as being transgendered, Isis King, and the most recent season with Virgg. These women were open with their identification as female, and often expressed the difficulty that came with this process. Virgg ended up leaving cycle twenty early on by choice due to not feeling up to par from the medication which she was required to take. These stories and backgrounds related closely with many audience members, making the show more marketable to a wider variety of people.

     Overall, America's Next Top Model has altered their cast and crew accordingly to appeal to wider audience base. They now have a social media score which factors into the models overall score each week. This allows fans to rate each persons photographs and critique them according to the public eye. During this time in panel it expresses and presents the wide range of people that this television show attracts. They show video responses from public viewers which allows the contestants to see their fan base more closely. This allows not only the contestants to see their fans, but also the viewers to become aware of the different range of people that this show is drawing appeal to. Regardless of America's Next Top Model's contestants or fan base, this wide range of gender representation, sexual orientation, and race brings about the question as to if the show is trying to market their show in order to gain viewers, or if this show is trying to raise awareness about the different range of people who are capable of making it big in the modeling world.

Sources:
Hasinoff, Amy Adele. "Fashioning Race for the Free Market on America's Next Top Model." Critical Studies in Media Communication 25.3 (2008): 324-43. Print.

Loverude, Rhonda M. ""America's Next Top Model Is...": Enforcing or Resisting Hegemonic Heterosexuality." (2011): n. pag. Web. 17 Nov. 2013. <http://udini.proquest.com/view/americas- next-top-model-is-pqid:2383503531/>.

Nicole. "Racial Representations in America’s Next Top Model." We Love Media Criticism. N.p., 19 Oct. 2009. Web. 17 Nov. 2013. <http://welovemediacrit.blogspot.com/2009/10/racial- representations-in-americas-next.html>.