Is Ugly Betty A Family Friendly Show?

Brent Bozell III, syndicated columnist and founder of the Media Research Center (a media watchdog group), had some pretty sharp attacks on Ugly Betty (and Heroes)  in his weekly column.  Some of them, in my opinion are very unfounded and uncalled for.

A little background:  recently, the Family Friendly Programming Forum held its annual Family Television Awards on the CW Network.  As we previously told you, America Ferrera was a winner, and Ugly Betty was named Best Comedy Series.  In his January 2 column, Mr Bozell takes exception to this:

But “Ugly Betty” was an even less acceptable choice, because it was presented to FFPF and ABC before it ever aired as a “family-friendly” alternative…anyone watching this show’s first season could see that the “family-friendly” tag just doesn’t apply anywhere near this. The Parents Television Council’s analysts counted 205 instances of sexual content and 154 examples of foul language in just the first season. They also found catty references to oral sex, genital size, pornography, strippers, anal sex, threesomes, kinky and fetishistic behavior, transsexuals, statutory rape, sadism and masochism.

Before I respond to this, I want to make one thing perfectly clear: I like Brent Bozell, and his organization.  He and I probably agree politically far more than we disagree.  And I am a parent of two school-aged children, and I am very careful about what I let them watch.

But, in this case, I think Bozell needs to get over himself.  Read on to find out why.

He has a very narrow definition of “family friendly”, I think.  His definition seems to be centered around shows that cater to kids with young children – say, 7 or 8 years old. But what about families with ‘tween kids?  Teen kids?  Wouldn’t the criteria be a little different?  Bozell seems to have a problem with the mere mention of sexuality, or (especially) homosexuality:

With this show set in the fashion industry, the show is heavy on sexual scenes and sex talk, straight and gay. “Ugly Betty” has several gay characters, and a transgendered former man (improbably played by former supermodel Rebecca Romijn). Even Betty’s teenaged nephew Justin is effeminate and loves the fashion industry. …

The writers love to throw gay and lesbian references in everywhere.

Hello?  It’s a show about the fashion industry, right?  My kids are tweens.  We’ve had the “sex talks” with them.  They know what homosexuality is.  I don’t think they are being corrupted by watching a show that acknowleges that there are gay people in the world.  This leads to the part that makes me angry:

This is “family-friendly”? When a show can win both a Family Television Award and a Media Award from the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, as “Ugly Betty” has, you know there’s something wrong. With a pile of plots advancing the gay agenda, a GLAAD Award is appropriate. A “family-friendly” award is insulting.

Huh?  “Gay Agenda”?  Mr Bozell, have you even watched the show?  Certainly you know that one of the things that makes Ugly Betty special is that the writing is incredbly subtle: there is no preaching, there is no agenda.  People just…are…on Ugly Betty.  Hilda does not make a scene of supporting Justin, she just does.  Marc had a coming out episode last year, yes, but if you’ve seen the show, you know that one ended in heartbreak.  Not exactly advancing an “agenda”, I don’t think.

If you’ll notice, the writers treat Marc’s gayness about the same as they do Ignaciao’s being Latino.  It’s not the focus of the show, it just is. 

The vulgarities bother me a little, but they are delivered in such a rapid-fire fashion, they go right over my kids’ heads.  My kids are more into the physical comedy.  And, my kids go to catholic school, so I guarantee you, they’ve heard worse, on the playground   .

Again, if we were talking about ONLY young children, that would be one thing, but teens and tweens can handle a little more, don’t you think?  Here is the mission of the FFPF, from their website:

• The definition of family friendly content is purposefully broad. Relevant to today’s diverse and complex consumer, it has multi-generational appeal, depicts real life and is appropriate in theme, content and language. Family friendly content also embodies a responsible resolution of issues. 
• The goal of the FFPF is to support and promote content alternatives that adults and children can enjoy together.
• The group’s focus is evolving with the changing media landscape. Since its inception in 1999, the FFPF has focused on supporting primetime network programming. In 2007, the group expanded its mission to include cable programming, as well as to explore content to additional distribution platforms.

There are legitimate complaints that Bozell didn’t bother addressing, like the fact that Ugly Betty’s writers are a little over-fond of the word “bitch”, and it isn’t usually delivered in the usual rapid-fire.  The introduction of Daniel in the pilot, caught being…er…serviced, was a bit awkward, but the writers never went there again. 

You have to admit, bedroom scenes are down this year, except for their comedic value (Betty and Christina stuck under Wilhelmina’s bed, for example).

I take my job as a father seriously, and I resent Bozell’s insinuation that, by allowing my children to watch Ugly Betty, I do not.  Hogwash.

There are great lessons to be learned by watching this show (for instance, this coming week is apparently going to address female body-insecurity and peer pressure), and those lessons to me outweigh any vulgarities to which my kids might be exposed.  It is far more important to me that my daughter reject the peer pressure starve herself, than for her to be protected from discovering that there are gay people in the fashion industry.  Get some priorities, man.

Or get a ClearPlay.  That’s what I would do if my kids were still little.

In the words of my almost-10-year-old-daughter, Mr. Bozell, “stop being such a poopy-head!”