An "Alex P. Keaton" Republican... or how a fictional character...

[wyldwolf]

..created "young republicans."

Conservative blogger who owes it all to Alex P. Keaton.

As a TV-watching child with little supervision, there were years of my life that centered around the television in the 1980s. Like many, Thursday night, "must see TV" was the best. I wasn't so big on Cosby, but you couldn't beat Family Ties, Cheers, and Night Court. Family Ties was an especially enjoyable show. When I began watching it, I quickly identified with Fox's character "Alex P. Keaton". I also developed a true distaste for liberalism and the oft-celebrated 60s "flower power" movement, the belief of Steve & Elise, Alex's former hippie parents. Although I was not even a teen-ager, and much of Alex's fondness of Reagan, Nixon, and conservatism was satirical, I wasn't mature enough to see the joke.

My friend Brandon and I would often enter into discussions about politics and being "young republicans" based on the information we would hear from Alex on Family Ties. (At that time when the MSM had its strangle-hold on the flow of information, that was one of the few conservative voices that we were able to hear and relate with.) His belief in conservatism and support of the republican party in the show was attractive, and even in the heart of children...seemed right and good.

http://www.redstate.org/print/2005/7/14/101926/605

I'll bet this author of this is Skippy! Spurned by Mallory one time too many, he's now a virgin 40-something woman hating Republican!

[XanaDUer]

1. Skippy could never have been a rethuglican

why he hung around that twit Alex is beyond me.

[MuseRider]

2. I saw Skippy as a warm up act for

the Smothers Brothers a bunch of years back. I never really watched the show Family Ties but I was familiar with it just enough to know who he was. He was really funny too.

I don't know why I needed to add that, he just did not seem like a Republican to me but those were the calmer, more same Clinton years.

Great, Alex Keaton clones. Sheesh. :eyes:

[Zorra]

3. Family Ties is a perfect example of the Reagan era RW propaganda

that was shoved down the collective throat of America.

[Hippo_Tron]

9. I think that you're taking it too far

Famlily Ties was an 80's sitcom no different than any other 80's sitcom. If it was meant as propaganda than so were most of the similar sitcoms that preceeded and followed it.

Besides, these people forget that Michael J Fox is a Democrat.

http://www.newsmeat.com/celebrity_political_donations/Michael_J_Fox.php

[Zorra]

10. "Alex Keaton" was a perfect Reagan era role model to influence

children into viewing republican conservatism as a form of rebellion against their parents. It fits right in with the right wingers' anti-boomer, anti-liberal, anti-'60s propaganda barrage that was shoved down America's throats during the Reagan 80's.

The first time I ever watched that show I thought it was being used as a RW propaganda tool. It is possible that the scriptwriter used the Alex character satirically, but unfortunately children (and many adults) do not recognize or understand satire, and many kids may have emulated the Alex character. Obviously, it worked on the freep discussed in the OP, and there is no reason to believe that it did not help brainwash a good number of other Reagan era kids also. The fact that Michael J. Fox is actually liberal is of no consequence to these (now) adults that were brainwashed by the show in the 80's. It was not him in real life, but his television character, that they watched and emulated.

Film is an incredibly powerful propaganda device and the propagandizing effects of film have many ramifications. Sitcoms and other television programs viewed for entertainment are possibly one of the most effective brainwashing techniques used on television, and can even define what is "normal" to and for a corporate controlled consumer society.

[Hippo_Tron]

13. Yea, but I have a feeling that those who didn't detect the sarcasm...

are probably not smart enough to vote Democratic anyway. If there had never been Alex Keaton, they would've just bought into the "Kerry will let the terra-ists win" argument.

[Lone_Wolf]

14. I wholeheartedly agree...

The 80's was about rampant materialism and militarism.

A look at 80's television is telling. The themes of man shows can be distilled down into "money will get you laid by a hot chick." I was part of the generation that grew up watching Family Ties. Many guys in my school tried to emulate that Alex P. Keaton look... we called these people "preppies." Who can also forget the show Miami Vice with the exotic cars that come standard with hot women. Movies like "Weird Science" showed that a couple of geeks could get hot chicks when dressed up like preps and drive hot cars. The theme in Pretty In Pink shows us the pretty girl from the wrong side of the tracks falls in love with a rich boy from the right side of the tracks. It is little wonder with this type of propaganda the preps grew up and morphed into "Yuppies" and the "We Generation."

Militarism was also a rampant themes 80's movies. "Top Gun" comes to mind which was partially funded by the USAF. It was pretty much a recruiting tool which painted the picture that you do really cool things in the USAF and get hot chicks. There's also "Rambo II" which makes toting a machine gun around seem like fun and it paints a very innaccurate picture of the Vietnam War. There was LOTS of pro-USA propaganda and pro-military during this time.

[Dr Ron]

4. Doesn't he realize Alex was partially satire

It's not as if the writers of the show actually were trying to promote such views through a character.

It is as if they followed Archie Bunker.

[Connie_Corleone]

5. Archie Bunker

I remember when I first started lurking at the freepers' site, I thought, "These people sound like Archie Bunker!" Come to find out that they LOVE that character, even though the show was making fun of them.

[bobbieinok]

8. Archie Bunker..many like my brother love him b/c he said what they believe

....and said it publicly, therefore legitimized it

once I heard my brother's reaction, I could never again watch the show thinking it was just funny

I do think many took heart from his character b/c they were 'finally' hearing their views on prime time

the show was meant as a parody but legitimized bigotry

[Orangepeel]

6. Alex always learned he was wrong at the end of the episode

didn't he?

I seem to remember that he'd start out all selfish and money grubbing and then realize that doing good for people was more important.

A Christmas-Carolesque holiday episode comes to mind, but I'm sure there were others.

[Cha]

7. And, I dare say, Michael J

Fox is Democrat! And so are Michael Gross and Merideth Baxter!

[hickman1937]

11. I think he's Canadian. Did he become a citizen here?

:shrug:

[Cha]

12. He might have since he's married to

an American..Tracy Pollen.


Even if he can't vote..he's still a Dem at

[fujiyama]

16. Not only the characters

but the main producer and writer Susan Borowitz donated $500 to Dukakis (unlikely she was a republican).

Looking back at it, it was an interesting concept (though it was pretty much just another silly 80s family sitcom) because the former flower children (the parents) were professionals (weren't they like in real estate or something?) and basically became yuppies which happened to many baby boomers.

[Iris]

15. Wonder why he "wasn't so big on Cosby"

And, what? Steve & Elise only had 1 belief and it was liberal?