The "Dumb Dad" is a common stereotype seen through TV shows such as Family Guy and The Simpsons. These dads on TV are goofy and always trying to make audiences laugh. These TV shows inaccurately portray fathers as being irresponsible and unable to function without the help of their wife. The once valued and respected fathers are now replaced with amateur and goofy dads of modern cartoons and sitcoms.
The best examples of America’s favorite idiotic fathers are Homer Simpson and Peter Griffin. Homer Simpson’s qualities have aired on television for over 25 years. But what is it about these incompetent personalities that society finds so intriguing? Ultimately, it's the fact that these idiotic, goofy dads make audiences laugh. Americans find humor in the fact that someone like Homer needs to ask the number to dial “911.” Peter Griffin once said, “Sorry kids, daddy loves you but daddy also loves TV, and in all fairness, TV came first.” American TV fanatics are oblivious to the fact that Homer and Peter are contributing to the stereotype of TV dads. ABC’s Modern Family Phil Dunphy is a TV dad who has a childlike attitude and wants to be known as the “cool dad.” Phil’s personality is seen to be extremely goofy. Because of his behavior, his children rarely taking him seriously and avoid his advice. Whenever Phil finds himself in a situation of discomfort he tends turns to his wife, Claire, to solve the issue. Although Phil is a 48 year old man, he has about as much respect in the family as his 13 year old son.
In reality, this isn't the case for the majority of fathers. What about the dads who coach soccer teams? Or the dads who work overtime to pay for college? Or the dads who spend time with their kids playing catch in the backyard? We need to start giving credit fathers who work hard to support their families. No matter what role you play in the family, if its a dad, guardian, older sibling, or mom, no one deserves to be shuffled aside into a certain lane created by media. Parents aren't perfect, but they aren't stereotypes either.
Commercials and advertisements are influenced by the trend of incompetence they see on TV. In 2012 the brand Huggies diapers released a commercial saying, “To prove Huggies diapers and wipes can handle anything, we put them to the toughest test imaginable: Dads.”
If pop culture did not see incompetent TV fathers as a social norm, would commercials like this not exist? Promoting this idea in our media reflects the way our society views fathers. TV, commercials and even movies constantly give fathers less and less credit for raising their family or being apart of something greater than just watching TV or forgetting to run that "really important errand."
