Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, November 17, 1994 TAG: 9411170113
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A19 EDITION: STATE
SOURCE: COX NEWS SERVICE
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Medium
In announcing the color-coded guide, the leader of the Media Research Center, L. Brent Bozell, praised ABC for following through on its commitment to ``more family-friendly'' viewing, but accused the Fox network of continuing to ``live up to its reputation for anti-family programming.''
In fact, when asked at a news conference to identify the television program he found most offensive, Bozell cited FOX's ``Married ... With Children,'' a series about a shoe salesman and his dysfunctional family.
``Anyone who would stand up and defend that program as having any redeeming values for a child is pathetically sick,'' he said.
The entertainment presidents of each network did not immediately return phone calls.
The center's ``1994 Parents' Guide to Prime Time Television Programming'' uses traffic signals to connote each program's content:
A green light signifies ``a show acceptable to conservatives.''
A yellow light indicates a program ``which may contain themes offensive to conservatives or inappropriate for younger viewers.''
A red light denotes sitcoms and dramas ``which frequently attack traditional values and conservative views.''
Oddly enough, some programs that have come under fire from conservatives and religious groups for their use of nudity, offensive language or criticism of conservatives rated only a yellow light.
ABC's ``NYPD Blue,'' for example, despite its graphic treatment of sex and violence, promotes ``a conservative position on law-and-order issues'' and depicts the police as ``honorable people doing their best in extremely trying circumstances.''
But CBS's ``Murphy Brown,'' which engaged then-Vice President Dan Quayle in a debate over family values in 1992, received a red light.
Although the show would have rated a yellow light for its anti-Democratic one-liners last year, it now features anti-conservative barbs in nearly every episode, according to the guide.
Bozell, while euphoric over the Republican victories in last week's election, said the conservative movement is ``being undermined every day'' by television programs, movies and music.
Even so, he emphasized that he did not want the government, even if in the control of conservatives, to do anything to regulate the content of television programming.
He said the guide was intended only as an attempt to help parents make ``informed viewing decisions.''
by CNB