Fox Soars from 'Failing' to 'Excellent' in GLAAD Report

GLAAD, the nation's LGBT media advocacy organization, today released the ninth edition of its Network Responsibility Index, which maps the quantity, quality, and diversity of LGBT representation on television.

Among broadcast networks, Fox stood out with 45 percent of its prime-time programming being LGBT-inclusive. Ratings smash Empire and the final season of Glee (pictured above) added heavy doses of diversity. The comedy Brooklyn Nine-Nine and the reality competition So You Think You Can Dance also contributed to LGBT visibility on Fox.

"The ninth edition of the NRI marks the first time in the report's history that a major broadcast network -- Fox -- received an 'Excellent' grade," said GLAAD CEO and president Sarah Kate Ellis. "This milestone highlights real change across the media landscape -- especially considering that the network received a 'Failing' grade in the NRI's first two editions."

Among cable networks, ABC Family earned its third consecutive "Excellent" grade with 74 percent LGBT-inclusive hours, thanks to multiracial LGBT characters and storylines on Pretty Little Liars (pictured above), The Fosters, Chasing Life, Switched at Birth, Young & Hungry, and Mystery Girls.

Broadcast networks earning a "Good" rating include the CW (The Flash, Arrow [pictured above], America's Next Top Model), which led in racial diversity of its LGBT characters, with 38 percent of impressions being made by people of color. It had the second-highest percentage of inclusive programming hours, with 44.8 percent of its original programming hours featuring LGBT characters.

On ABC, no one oversaw more LGBT-inclusive hours of television than Shonda Rhimes, creator of Grey's Anatomy, Scandal, and How to Get Away With Murder (pictured above). Modern Family and Dancing With the Stars also upped ABC's gay ante. But while 32 percent of LGBT-inclusive hours in ABC's total programming earned it a "Good" rating, only 17 percent of the network's LGBT impressions were made by people of color, the lowest of any broadcast network.

CBS remains languishing at the bottom of the broadcast networks, with 27 percent of programming featuring LGBT characters or storylines, most of which came from its reality shows like Survivor, The Amazing Race, and Big Brother (pictured above).

Cable networks earning a "Good" rating include Showtime, HBO, and MTV (with 41 percent, 31 percent and 30 percent LGBT-inclusive hours respectively). "Failing" grades went to A&E (with a paltry 8 percent) and History, with zero LGBT-inclusive hours of programming -- proving that the History Channel is on the wrong side of history. (Pictured above: the History Channel's The Bible)

GLAAD also announced that this is the final edition of its NRI, and the organization will now turn its focus to increasing the diversity of LGBT images on TV through its annual Where We Are on TV Report.

"GLAAD's Network Responsibility Index has helped reshape the television landscape, inspiring LGBT characters and storylines that move acceptance forward," Ellis said. "As representations of LGBT people in the media continue to rise in number, pushing television networks to make those representations more diverse is more crucial than ever. This requires a different set of tools than the NRI provides, and as such GLAAD will shift focus to its annual TV diversity and transgender reports."

View GLAAD's complete 2015 Network Responsibility Index here.