The new season of American television is sending a strong message that the industry is through with political correctness. In fact, the major networks seem positively giddy about a horrific return to casual sexism and racism, says Alessanda Stanley. “Desperate Housewives is entertaining, but it turns the clock back to pre-Betty Friedan America, lampooning four bored, frustrated, white upper-middle-class ladies who lunch. Boston Legal lets women practice law, but mostly on their backs… Meanwhile, comedy-variety shows are positively reveling in their new-found freedom to be unfair.”