In the scene where Lance Loud is on the phone with his family, he reads a media description of himself and his "flamboyant, leech-like homosexuality". That's a direct quote from an article written for The New York Times by Anne Roiphe. She made equally scathing remarks about the entire Loud family.
Craig Gilbert, portrayed here by James Gandolfini, was the award-winning documentary filmmaker who created, wrote, directed, and produced the original An American Family (1973) series on PBS. Thanks to the controversy surrounding the iconic series, it would prove to be his final credit.