Daddies or Dummies
by Kerby Anderson, Contributing Author: On various television sitcoms, a Dad acts like a buffoon every 3.24 minutes. That was the conclusion of a small study with the title “Daddies or Dummies” done by
Savannah Keenan at Brigham Young University after watching popular TV programs.
Don’t dismiss this study merely because a student conducted it. Her study was the winner of the college’s Fulton Conference. And Naomi Schaefer Riley, writing in the New York Post, reminds us that the student’s research matches other academic studies. For example, a study the Erica Scharrer in the Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media found that the number of times a mother told a joke at the father’s expense increased dramatically from the 1950s to 1990.
Savannah Keenan’s study also looked at the reaction of the children onscreen to their father’s stupidity or cluelessness. At least half the time, children reacted negatively by rolling their eyes, making fun of Dad, criticizing him, or walking away while he was talking to them.
We should be concerned about the message this is sending to children. America is already facing a crisis because of its fatherlessness. Fathers are often seen as insignificant and unimportant. These programs are reinforcing the negative stereotype that fathers are incompetent and uninformed.
I realize that on past television sitcoms Dads were sometimes the butt of jokes. Their mistakes made them human. Sometimes they even had to apologize to their kids. Sometimes the children were able to trick them and sneak out of the house undetected.
But in these past sitcoms, it was still obvious that Dad was in control. He was an authority figure in the home. There were consequences to disobedience. Now Dad is someone to ignore. He isn’t very competent and certainly isn’t someone to obey and respect. We aren’t helping families when TV sitcoms turn Daddies into Dummies.
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Kerby Anderson is a radio talk show host heard on numerous stations via the Point of View Network endorsed by Dr. Bill Smith, Editor, ARRA News Service
Tags: Kerby Anderson, Viewpoints, Point of View, Daddies or Dummies To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. and "Like" Facebook Page - Thanks!
Savannah Keenan at Brigham Young University after watching popular TV programs.
Don’t dismiss this study merely because a student conducted it. Her study was the winner of the college’s Fulton Conference. And Naomi Schaefer Riley, writing in the New York Post, reminds us that the student’s research matches other academic studies. For example, a study the Erica Scharrer in the Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media found that the number of times a mother told a joke at the father’s expense increased dramatically from the 1950s to 1990.
Savannah Keenan’s study also looked at the reaction of the children onscreen to their father’s stupidity or cluelessness. At least half the time, children reacted negatively by rolling their eyes, making fun of Dad, criticizing him, or walking away while he was talking to them.
We should be concerned about the message this is sending to children. America is already facing a crisis because of its fatherlessness. Fathers are often seen as insignificant and unimportant. These programs are reinforcing the negative stereotype that fathers are incompetent and uninformed.
I realize that on past television sitcoms Dads were sometimes the butt of jokes. Their mistakes made them human. Sometimes they even had to apologize to their kids. Sometimes the children were able to trick them and sneak out of the house undetected.
But in these past sitcoms, it was still obvious that Dad was in control. He was an authority figure in the home. There were consequences to disobedience. Now Dad is someone to ignore. He isn’t very competent and certainly isn’t someone to obey and respect. We aren’t helping families when TV sitcoms turn Daddies into Dummies.
-----------
Kerby Anderson is a radio talk show host heard on numerous stations via the Point of View Network endorsed by Dr. Bill Smith, Editor, ARRA News Service
Tags: Kerby Anderson, Viewpoints, Point of View, Daddies or Dummies To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. and "Like" Facebook Page - Thanks!
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