By Louis Avallone
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With 14 million viewers per episode, and endorsements and merchandise bringing in $400 million per year, “Duck Dynasty” is flying high.
“Duck Dynasty” is a television series on A&E that portrays the lives of the unflappable Robertson family in West Monroe, who operate a family duck call business. In less than two years, it has more than quadrupled the number of viewers per episode.
So, why are so many folks paying attention? Maybe it’s because the family is affectionate toward one another. Or that they are open about their Christian faith, and nearly every episode ends with the family praying around the dinner table. Maybe it’s because they’ve had to endure bad times, including when the patriarch of the family, Phil Robertson, was running a dilapidated bar, and abandoned completely his young family for a short time, before becoming baptized, seeing the errors of his ways, and starting anew. Maybe it’s because they are pro-business, pro-life and are committed to sexual abstinence before marriage.
Or maybe it’s because they appear much less concerned with expressing political correctness, than with sharing their deeply held beliefs. This was certainly true last month, when Phil, in an interview with GQ magazine, paraphrased Corinthians by saying virtually everyone – from the adulterers, to the homosexual offenders, to the greedy, drunkards, slanderers and swindlers – won’t inherit the kingdom of God. He later went on to say, “We are all created by the Almighty and like Him, I love all of humanity. We would all be better off if we loved God and loved each other.”
But more important than A&E initially suspending Phil from filming indefinitely because of these comments, and then reinstating him, and more important than Cracker Barrel apologizing to their customers, after initially pulling “Duck Dynasty” products off of their shelves, and more important than the reality show ratings, is what this all says about the direction of our nation, and the yearning to return to traditional values by what some have called the “silent majority.”
The “silent majority” are the folks that have not necessarily taken an active part in politics, and are not necessarily conservative, but they clearly resent anyone disrespecting traditional American values, such as freedom of speech, Christianity, marriage, the right to bear arms, etc.
And although the influence of this “silent majority” has appeared throughout history, it perhaps was none more prominent, in recent times, than in the 1970s. In fact, in January, 1970, Time magazine named “Middle America” as a replacement for their annual “Man of the Year” award, recognizing the “silent majority” as a powerfully assertive force in U.S. society, especially during the dissent and confrontation of that era.
These are the same folks who later went on later that decade to elect Ronald Reagan in 1980, and were also known, as “Reagan Democrats.” In fact, Reagan’s election was predicted on-air by another television icon at the time, who likewise seemed far less concerned with political correctness than sharing his deeply held beliefs — Archie Bunker.
Archie was a blue-collar, World War II veteran, and the product of his working class neighborhood in Queens. Although fictional, the “All in The Family” television series ranked number-one in the ratings from 1971 to 1976.
His opinions on race, sex, marriage, and religion were so politically incorrect that the initial episodes included prominent warnings about its content being offensive. Despite Archie’s opinions, “All in The Family” provided a platform for American dialogue, especially with the “silent majority,” and in doing so, gave way to greater understanding on many controversial issues of the times.
So, while Bunker and Robertson are not the same characters, whether fictional or otherwise, they do have one thing in common: Their lack of political correctness resonates with the American people, and the “silent majority.”
Actually, in the case of Archie, this was not intended at all by Norman Lear, the producer of “All in The Family.” He expected the public to dislike Archie, and was shocked when he became such a beloved figure. And maybe A&E is shocked, as well; maybe they expected that Americans would laugh at the amusing behavior of the “rednecks.” But we haven’t.
And if political incorrectness is on the rise within the “silent majority” of Americans, perhaps this all means that the cultural pendulum is finally swinging the other direction.
In the words of Phil Robertson, “Our culture has accepted two huge lies. The first is that if you disagree with someone’s lifestyle, you must fear or hate them. The second is that to love someone means you agree with everything they believe or do. Both are nonsense. You don’t have to compromise convictions to be compassionate.”
And especially in this coming election year, hopefully our candidates can remember the same – the successful ones will.