The Portrayal of Fathers in Popular Media

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2013

Abstract

“Honey, what area am I in charge of in this house?” said the dad in Good Luck Charlie, a Disney Channel show we watch with my kids. Bob’s words were addressed to his television wife Amy after she had corrected him in front of their daughter about not having the right to ground her because of her deception. Mom belittled Dad (albeit in a humorous way) and made sure he knew who the real boss of the family was: the mother. Sitcoms play out this scenario on screens all across America at an increasingly alarming rate. Buffoonish, ignorant, self-centered, and inept television dads must be shown their proper places in the home. At best, television dads are nominal or "figurehead leaders of the home, but at worst, they are relegated to the intellectual level of the family pet.

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