It really bothers me when someone says that a show portrays [X group of people] negatively because [character who is a memer of X group of people] did something wrong. For example, from and MSNBC article about Desperate Housewives:
"Almost all of the portrayals of gay people are on the negative side," Aterovis said. Among the examples he cites: the teenager who is exploring homosexuality also killed a woman in a hit-and-run accident and expressed no remorse.
Um. Ok. See, I really don't think that the people behind the show are trying to say that gay people are homicidal maniacs with a penchant for vehicular manslaughter; it seems far more likely that this is a character who killed someone with his car and who happens to be gay, or a gay character who happens to have killed someone with his car.
It's stupid that just because a tv character belongs to a "marginalized group." that character has to be and do only good things.
I do grant that in certain circumstances shows do have to be a little careful, particularly with negative stereotypes: for example, portraying a black woman in a head-rag eating watermelon on a porch might not be such a good idea, because it confirms an existing negative idea of what a black woman is. A gay character mowing down a pedestrian, however, does not have that stigma attached: there is no stereotype of gay men as murderers, and thus the show is not reinorcing an erroneous belief that gay men will totally run you down and not care. Some might, but I bet the vast majority would at least be a little upset...