Did anyone really believe that cable network A&E would keep embattled Duck Dynasty patriarch Phil Robertson off the air permanently? We didn't and we weren't surprised when the network announced last week that the popular reality show would resume filming in the spring with the entire clan, bigot Robertson included. This is just the latest culture war red herring that distracts attention from the bigger picture of LGBT rights and only serves to give A&E a boatload of free publicity. Sure, we should call out homophobia, but going to the extreme of boycotts and shutting down free speech is not the answer.
Robertson had been "under hiatus from filming indefinitely," in A&E's words, because of the anti-gay comments he made in an interview with GQ magazine. Robertson was asked what he thought was sinful and replied, "Start with homosexual behavior and just morph out from there. Bestiality, sleeping around with this woman and that woman and that woman and those men." He also said, "It seems like, to me, a vagina – as a man – would be more desirable than a man's anus. That's just me. I'm just thinking: there's more there. She's got more to offer. I mean, come on, dudes!"
Cue the outrage. As predictable as last year's Chick-fil-A dustup – when president Dan Cathy told the Baptist Press that the company was "guilty as charged" for "backing the biblical definition of family" – gay rights groups sounded the homophobe alarm and right wing groups rallied around the duck family. An online petition calling on Robertson to be reinstated drew 250,000 signatures. A&E was reportedly deluged with comments from Duck Dynasty fans, many of whom, it turns out, are Christian conservatives. Well, duh: it's a show about a family of Christian conservatives in the Deep South that earns millions by making successful duck calls and parlayed that into a goldmine of lucrative endorsement deals.
It turns out that A&E could only stand the heat for about a week. That's not surprising either. The network brass went through the scripted responses: non-apology from Robertson and the network's message of disapproval and "indefinite" suspension. Then on a Friday afternoon during the holiday season A&E essentially announced the suspension's over. Of course A&E will benefit from the free publicity – when the series resumes more people will watch just to see if any of the Robertsons say anything about the controversy or, in what would be a ratings bonanza, actually expand on Phil Robertson's anti-gay comments. Last season's finale drew nearly 10 million viewers. Did anyone think that Robertson would do anything other than play into the stereotypical white Southern man?
The demands for the show's cancelation, and by extension, removing Robertson's platform, by some LGBTs would be counterproductive. Robertson has the right to express himself. A&E has a right to suspend or fire him or cancel the show. Gays weren't "thrown under the bus" as A&E has pledged to air public service announcements "promoting unity, tolerance, and acceptance among all people." Those messages should air during Duck Dynasty so that millions will see them. Some gays fret about a backlash. It's doubtful that many opinions will change on one side or the other.
Here's the news flash: it's all fake anyway. Reality shows are inherently more about good editing and over-the-top characters than anything remotely resembling real life. While Robertson might be anti-gay, in the long run it's a flash in the pan. When the shouting and tweets are over, there will still be the LGBT community and its supporters and those who oppose us. Both are influential. Both are powerful. The barriers to same-sex marriage are coming down quickly and the forces of equality will not be stopped by a show like Duck Dynasty. And by the way, no one is forcing anyone to watch. If people are uninformed enough to base their beliefs or voting decisions on the views of a duck call maker, well, then our democracy is in deeper trouble.
Happy New Year. May 2014 being fewer of these false controversies.