Outrageous: A History of Showbiz and the Culture Wars

by Kliph Nesteroff

The new medium of radio helped spread jazz throughout the country—upsetting the honky squares.

Between 1968 and 1972, several obscenity laws were ruled unconstitutional. The result was a proliferation of topless dance clubs and adult film theaters. Unwieldy pubes became a familiar sight on both the Broadway stage and the silver screen.

When institutions and authorities feel themselves to be secure, ridicule and satire are unobjectionable.”

“One of the fantasies that has been created during the Reagan administration is the myth of the liberal media bias,” complained Frank Zappa in October 1988. “Even if you have liberal reporters covering the events—they could be wildly left wing covering the event—the guy who pays the salaries has the right—and usually uses it—to tell the man who does the editing for the television news how it’s going to be done.” Zappa added, “If you raise this bogeyman of liberal media bias, it gives you the license under the idea of American fairness to give the people on the other side a little bit more time … And what that did was it just swamped the country with conservative propaganda. Except that it wasn’t conservative propaganda—it was bordering on fascist propaganda.”

First Lady Barbara Bush watched just one episode of The Simpsons. Despite having raised future president George W. Bush, she called The Simpsons “the dumbest thing I had ever seen.”