#dontburythegays: spectators' responses to queer women representation on television

In the wake of the #BuryYourGays trend, this thesis explores the intersections of race, gender, and sexuality as part of the spectator experience. In this thesis, I analyze tweets about queer women characters on television, including Black Mirror, One Day At A Time, and Sense8, and more. Assuming to find tweets invoking queer-antagonism or negativity, my research found that spectators took to Twitter to share their positive interpretations of queer characters in these shows. Spectators clearly formed an emotional connection to queer characters, their stories, and to the actors who portray them, tweeting their feelings of love, excitement, appreciation, empowerment, positivity, anger, and even sadness. Spectators also responded to queer characters by tweeting about fanfiction, shipping (desiring characters to be in a relationship), being fans/stans, politics, futurity, representation, personal narratives.