Scalar tensions and the representation of the queer Spanish nation-state: A thematic analysis of Drag Race Spain

Abstract

RuPaul’s Drag Race has globally produced 16 nationally franchised versions of the show. Queer scholarship has studied this franchising of queer culture by applying the model of glocalization, where the U.S. show is adapted to the local queer market in the franchising nation-state. I thematically analyzed the first two seasons of Drag Race Spain (DRS) and viewership in the Països Catalans region of Spain to investigate how three scalar tensions (U.S. Superstructure, Defining Spain, and Exporting Spain) structure queer culture on the show. I concluded that the representation of the nation-state on DRS masks the queer geographic diversity of Spain and the international market’s influence on the country’s representation.