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February 06, 2006
Why Is the Typical Hollywood Movie Liberal?
If you think that Hollywood movies are typically liberal, as many Americans do, you probably attribute it to the mostly liberal producers, directors and actors who make the movies.
Matthew Yglesias challenges that conventional wisdom, arguing that Hollywood movies are left- of-center because their target audience is left of center:
Teenagers go to a lot of movies. They need reasons to get out of the house away from the prying eyes of their parents, and can't legally participate in a lot of nightlife activities. As a result, there's a relatively low bar you need to cross to convince a teen to go to your movie. Parents with kids at home are the reverse -- it's expensive for them to hire a sitter for the kids, and since they don't get that many opportunities to spend an evening out the opportunity cost of going to the movies is high. So you need to cross a pretty high bar to get them to go out to the movies. Last, insofar as you live in a densely-populate area, it's much more convenient to go to the movies.If Yglesias is right the shift in the movie industry from theater revenue to DVD and at-home-on-demand revenue should trigger a rightward shift in on-screen politics.As a result, the audience that studios are trying to appeal to is younger, more childless, and more urban than the American population as a whole.
These also happen to be the demographic characteristics of American liberalism. So it's not that surprising that rationally self-interested movie studios would be much more inclined to push projects designed to appeal to liberals than projects designed to appeal to conservatives.
Network television is run by a very similar group of people as those who make movies, but it has very different demographic characteristics. As a consequence of this, and notwithstanding The West Wing, you see a huge number of shows on network television propounding a very right wing depiction of the criminal justice system.
Of course, there are those who argue that Hollywood is quite conservative.
Posted by Conor at February 6, 2006 01:42 AM
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Comments
Hollywood movies typically reflect liberalist ideas because they are intended to challenge a traditional notion. Producers and writers alike seek to convey their certain opinions through a film. In considering a film’s viewpoint, one has to regard what was occurring during that particular era of which it was a product. Were gender roles changing? Was homosexuality becoming more tolerated? Changes in issues such as these contribute to a film’s ability to be more controversial.
The film industry is constantly changing. Traditional values are questioned and in regards to the issue of censorship, what was typically considered forbidden to show in theaters is now being deemed acceptable. Gender roles are shifting as women in film are becoming more outspoken.
Controversial topics can shock an audience, but more importantly it can amuse one. Film producers are always seeking new ways to entertain their viewer.
Posted by: LOhta at February 7, 2006 04:05 PM