Groundbreaking Situation Comedy Leaves its Imprint
By: Mitchell Shapiro A professor in the School of Communication, and an expert on the history of television sitcoms, writes about the 50th anniversary of “All in the Family.” Television changed forever on Jan. 12, 1971, with the debut of Norman Lear's groundbreaking series, “All in the Family.” Viewers had never been introduced to a character like Archie Bunker, whose ethnic slurs and Neanderthal social viewpoints might have been commonplace in the blue collar, white male dominated taverns of the Queens (New York) neighborhood where the series was set. However, [...]