Are gays and lesbians being Tuned Out?

Tuned Out, a new report from gay rights group, Stonewall, argues that BBC TV is seriously failing gay, lesbian and bisexual viewers.

We monitored 168 hours of peak time TV on BBC One and BBC Two: during that time, lesbian and gay people and their lives were realistically and positively portrayed for just six minutes.

In Media Guardian (free registration required), Stonewall Chief Executive Ben Summerskill points the finger at EastEnders as one of the main offenders.

Its last gay visitor, from 2001 to 2005, was Derek. But to satisfy the prudes who appear to run East- Enders, Derek had almost no characterisation. In his tenure in Albert Square, whose other residents rival the Bloomsbury Group as bedhoppers, viewers never got a single meaningful insight into his private life. (The only evidence of his past was a - touch-free - chance encounter with a former boyfriend who turned out to be an entertainments manager in a holiday camp.)