How times have changed (Ellen)

So I’m watching an episode of “Ellen” from the lesbian years. I remember when those shows first aired starting with “The Puppy Episode,” and the controversy ABC fueled by not only rating the episodes TV-MA but putting a full-screen disclaimer before each episode that the material might not be appropriate for all viewers. Now the show is airing in syndication on Oxygen, at 9:00 in the morning, and they’re rated G. No MA, no disclaimers, just a G. Makes me wonder what percentage of the change is attributable to ABC’s over-reacting and how much can be attributed to some small measure of maturing that the American TV watching audience may have undergone in the past decade.

Eh, it all has to do with how big a deal the media makes of it at the time.

The Superbowl fiasco of a few years ago was pretty mild, but might as well have been rated NC-17 for the amount of outrage/drama it caused. The same thing, once it’s expected, is much lower on the scale of shock and inappropriateness.

Unlike movie ratings, which are governed and given by one organization, the television ratings are actually self-administered by the networks.

It’s been 10 years, and attitudes change. The public acceptance of homosexuality has changed a lot in the past ten years.