-Isms: Views on life in rural America

Who is your favorite sitcom dad?

Think about it before committing to a final answer.

Several come to mind - strong role models who believe in family, the hate-to-love protagonist who struggles with inner demons but has a heart of gold, the love-to-hate man who protects family at all costs.

What I discovered, after reading the article titled, “Why are sitcom dads still so inept?” is this: I must watch a lot of older TV shows. Or, at least, I gravitate toward characters who exhibit the aforementioned qualities.

I also discovered current television shows don’t do dad justice.

According to author Erica Scharrer, sitcoms “rely on the shorthand assumptions that form the basis of stereotypes...” and sitcom dads are driven by humor relating to certain expectations associated with gender, sexual identity and class.

Scharrer writes that every time a sitcom stereotypes the predominant male character, it “reinforces the idea that mothers should take on the lion’s share of parenting responsibilities.”

Hmm, maybe the three sitcom dads who first came to mind are inept, too.

In a research study conducted by Scharrer and fellow researchers, 34 rated, family-based sitcoms, airing between 1980 and 2017, were selected for the study.

Researchers picked two episodes to view and then clipped 578 scenes with dads involved in disparagement humor, where fathers make fun of themselves or another character.

Next, researchers broke down each scene into three parenting groupings: giving advice, setting rules or reinforcing positive or negative elements of their on-air child’s behavior.

Some of the key takeaways: On television, fathers aren’t shown parenting in newer sitcoms. When they do attempt to make a difference, the interaction involves foolish humor 50% of the time.

In other words, sitcoms encourage viewers to laugh at dad’s mess-ups.

Sure, I grew up watching Ward Cleaver, Darrin Stephens, Jed Clampett and Andy Griffith. While a few of them might have come across as bumbling, lovable goofballs, all tried to impart common-sense knowledge and rule with love.

They seem worlds apart from Homer Simpson or Peter Griffin.

It begs the question: Do sitcom dads define reality?

The Pew Research Center states that dad’s time caring for children has tripled, based on poll data from 1965 to 2016. Seventeen percent of stay-at-home parents are fathers. According to Pew polls, “only 39% of fathers feel they are doing ‘a very good job’ of raising their children.”

Just when I think society has come a long way, baby, from the rigid gender roles of the 1960s, it seems like we haven’t come far enough.

Television - heck, any form of entertainment - is a reflection of how we view culture at a specific point in time. What do today’s choices say about men, masculinity and their role within a family?

Let’s hope real-life role models set stronger examples.