EDITOR’S PICKS
February 2012
Ameritopia: The Unmaking of America By Mark Levin
The conservative radio host argues against “utopianism,” a left-wing anti-freedom idea that threatens to destroy the United States.
Release date: Jan. 17, 2012 (Threshold Editions, $26.99)
Drive Starring Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan
Gosling is a Hollywood stunt driver by day and getaway driver for criminals by night. It’s an action film that’s rated R for good reason.
Release date: Jan. 31, 2012 (Film District/Sony Pictures, $26.99)
Top Shot. Hosted by a former Sur-
vivor contestant, this show has 16 contestants competing for $100,000 in shooting challenges. The reigning champion is a 28-year-old Christian camp director from Texas.
One reality show that Democrats
like and Republicans don’t, though, is the raunchy Jersey Shore on MTV. Of the more mainstream fare, Republicans list among their favorites the ABC comedy-drama Castle, which stars Nathan Fillion as a mystery writ- er, and the NBC reality weight-loss show The Biggest Loser. (See table.) Among the favorite TV shows identi-
fi ed by liberals were 30 Rock and Parks and Recreation. And one show loved by Democrats but despised by Repub- licans is HBO’s Treme. A darling among critics, Treme is
about New Orleans residents in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. “Democrats prefer productions that push traditional boundaries and show sympathy for the underdog,” Winzen- burg tells Newsmax. He adds, “Just as they see them-
selves fi ghting traditionalists to help the poor and disenfranchised, Dem- ocrats identify with anti-heroes and cheer on sarcastic comedians that skewer conservative values.”
Favorite Television Programs REPUBLICANS
DEMOCRATS Castle 30 Rock
Which isn’t to say that Republi-
cans shun all modern-day sitcoms. One that resonates with them is ABC’s The Middle, which stars Patricia Hea- ton and Neil Flynn as parents raising three kids in Middle America. Sitcoms appealing to liberals,
says Winzenburg, “have large group casts that refl ect the Democratic support of inclusivity, where all work together for a progressive, common good. Republican viewers like shows that have more traditional roles that emphasize individualism with clearly defined right and wrong. Their entertainment comes from seeing average, middle-class Americas struggle to do what’s right and make it on their own.” On the fi lm front, The Hollywood
Reporter’s poll included recent releases and a few hundred of the most popular titles of all time, and it found that Republicans prefer inspirational family fi lms that clearly distinguish the good guys from the bad guys while Democrats like raunchy comedies and edgier dramas with more ambiguity. Rise of the Planet of the Apes, for
The Biggest Loser
Hawaii Five-O
The Mentalist
Parks and Recreation
Glee
example, appealed to Democrats far more than it did Republicans. To the extent the movie takes a position one way or the other, it makes the apes out to be better than the humans. Republicans, on the other hand,
love Soul Surfer and Secretariat much more than Democrats do. Both movies treat Christianity with reverence and both are stories of individual struggle and achievement. Interestingly, the majority of both
parties conclude that movies have a liberal bias to them. Conservatives hoping that might
Cougar Town
change soon are out of luck from a purely business perspective, because the movie that Democrats and Repub- licans say refl ects that left-wing bias most happens to be the biggest block- buster in history: Avatar.
FEBRUARY 2012 | NEWSMAX 43
CASTLE/VIVIAN ZINK/DISNEY ABC TELEVISION GROUP/GETTY IMAGES / 30 ROCK/ZUMA PRESS / BIGGEST LOSER/ANDY KROPA/GETTY IMAGES ENTERTAINMENT/ GETTY IMAGES / PARKS/FREDERICK M. BROWN/GETTY IMAGES ENTERTAINMENT/GETTY IMAGES / HAWAII/CBS PHOTO ARCHIVE/CBS/GETTY IMAGES / GLEE/ JEFF KRAVITZ/FILMMAGIC, INC/GETTY IMAGES / MENTALIST/CBS PHOTO ARCHIVE/CBS/GETTY IMAGES / COUGAR/MARIO PEREZ/DISNEY ABC TELEVESION GROUP/GETTY IMAGES
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