Is portraying more gays in our media engineered to reduce social conflict or to make straight men feel weaker?

If it’s to make straight men weaker, would that be to neutralize Americans protesting the destruction of their civil rights and their middle class life?

um…um..yes, no? I’m not sure it’s “engineered” to do either. If it makes you feel personally weaker, I think that’s your issue. As for reducing social conflict, don’t flatter yourself. Gays being portrayed in the media has a whole lot more to do with gays and lesbians successfully advocating for civil and human rights, as well as coming out and actually writing the shows and screenplays, having the courage to cease being invisible.