“I Was Sad But Now I Am Gay”: Examining an English-Medium Thai Newspaper Narratives on LGBT Issues

This study aims to investigate the representation of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) individuals in Thai online newspaper articles. One hundred and seventy-three articles from the Bangkok Post, the major English-medium newspaper in Thailand, were collected from 2011 to 2022. The data were organized into three time periods: the first period from 2011 to 2014, the second period from 2015 to 2018, and the third period from 2019 to 2022. After this, two main approaches to data analysis have been adopted: thematic analysis and sentiment analysis. The results revealed a transforming journey of LGBT representation in Thai newspaper articles. ‘Rights and Equality’ is the major topic discussed in LGBT-related articles in all three periods. Fortunately, the sentiment analysis of the first-person pronoun ‘I’ informed a positive shift in LGBT situations in Thailand. Even though the status of LGBTs is not completely recognized in the Thai legal system, the findings from this study show a positive development of respect and acceptance of the public for LGBT members.