What’s the Motive Behind TV’s ‘Dumb Dads’?
Dr. Michael Brown, Author of the New Book ‘Jezebel’s War With America,’ Says the Spirit of Jezebel—Who Loved to Emasculate Men—Is Alive and Well, Attempting to Strip Men of their Roles as Leaders
CHARLOTTE, N.C.—Have you noticed that the world of popular entertainment seems intent on emasculating men—in particular fathers? Just think back to the early days of TV when the father was the source of wisdom, stability and strength—when the father was honored.
Think back, says author and national radio host Dr. Michael Brown, to shows like “Leave It to Beaver,” “Ozzie and Harriet,” “My Three Sons” or “Father Knows Best,” when it was assumed the fathers really did know best.
Contrast that esteemed, respected role of the husband and father with the beleaguered, mocked figure of today—a figure scorned by his children and ridiculed by his wife. This trend is real, and Brown writes about it in his new book, “Jezebel’s War with America: The Plot to Destroy Our Country and What We Can Do to Turn the Tide,” where he details that the evil spirit of the biblical figure Jezebel who lived 3,000 years ago is alive and well today.
Jezebel thrived on emasculating men. And if you don’t see it, Brown says, there’s plenty of evidence.
For example, back in 2005, John Tierney published an op-ed in The New York Times titled “The Doofus Dad,” beginning with this anecdote: One evening, after watching an episode of “The Simpsons” with his son, the 6-year-old asked him, “Why are dads on TV so dumb?” Why indeed!
This prompted Tierney to ask himself where fathers have gone wrong today. He wrote: “We spend twice as much time with our kids as we did two decades ago, but on television we’re oblivious (‘Jimmy Neutron’), troubled (‘The Sopranos), deranged (‘Malcolm in the Middle) and generally incompetent (‘Everybody Loves Raymond’). Even if Dad has a good job, like the star of ‘Home Improvement,’ at home he’s forever making messes that must be straightened out by Mom.”
In fact, Tierney reported, “a study by the National Fatherhood Initiative found that fathers are eight times more likely than mothers to be portrayed negatively on network television.” Does this not have a neutering effect?
“Note that this study is now 14 years old,” Brown said. “How much worse are things today?”
Brown shared in “Jezebel’s War With America” that in 2013, Sarah Petersen observed that, “If you watch TV, then you’ve most likely witnessed the portrayal of the modern-day husband and father as lazy, incompetent and stupid.” She continued, “Just these three characteristics are sure to bring to mind one commercial or sitcom that personifies this type of man.”
And, Brown asks, what is beyond these negative caricatures of men?
According to Courtney Kane, also writing in The New York Times in 2005: “The portrayals began as a clever reversal of traditional gender roles in campaigns, prompted by the ire of women and feminist organizations over decades of ads using stereotyped imagery of an incompetent, bumbling housewife who needed to be told which coffee or cleanser to buy. As those images disappeared, the pendulum swung, producing campaigns portraying men in general, and husbands and fathers in particular, as objects of ridicule, pity or even scorn.”
“How fascinating,” Brown said. “This wasn’t just some random, widespread coincidence. This was quite intentional. We cannot overestimate the impact this constant negative bombardment has on our psyches. The influence of TV is massive.”
Brown also shared that the National Fatherhood Initiative (NFI) website reported in 2015 that “the portrayal of fathers in commercials and advertising play a huge role in how we see fathers. Studies show commercials rarely portray men as nurturers. … (F)athers are still often portrayed by consumer brands as one extreme or the other … shown as incompetent, foolish, and emotionally disconnected as parents.”
This was further confirmed on Dad Blog UK, with reference to a new BBC sitcom called “Motherland:” “The few men that appear in the show are two-dimensional. They are either camp, effeminate stay at home dads or alpha-men, uninterested in family life and found on the golf-course, stag weekends or teambuilding weekends with colleagues.”
“So the men in this sitcom are either feminized or hyper-masculinized, either effeminate or into stag weekends,” Brown said. “Jezebel must be smiling.”
“Jezebel’s War with America,” set for release Aug. 6, focuses on the fact that the spirit of the biblical figure Jezebel is at work today, through a fascination with witchcraft and sorcery, radical feminism coupled with the extreme pro-abortion movement, along with other spiritual and cultural forces in an attempt destroy America. Brown’s eye-opening book not only unveils a satanic plot, beginning with an all-out assault on the church, but it will equip every believer with tools to defeat the enemy in their own personal lives as well as in the nation.
Dr. Michael L. Brown is founder and president of AskDrBrown Ministries and president of FIRE School of Ministry. The author of more than 35 books, including “Saving a Sick America” (2017), he is also the host of the nationally syndicated daily talk radio show “The Line of Fire,” as well as the host of shows on GOD TV, NRBTV and METV. His syndicated columns appear on many leading websites, and his scholarly publications range from biblical commentaries to articles in Semitic journals and theological dictionaries. He has served as an adjunct or visiting professor at seven leading seminaries and has debated gay activists, agnostic professors and Orthodox rabbis on university campuses.
“Jezebel’s War with America” by Dr. Michael L. Brown will be released by FrontLine, an imprint of Charisma House, which publishes books that challenge, encourage, teach and equip Christians.
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