I watched ABC Family last ...

Question: I watched ABC Family last night since I had become hooked on Kyle XY last season. Not that I'm a prude by any means, but I was a little taken aback that ABC "Family" would have a masturbation joke on Kyle, a commercial for some cat show that mentions having "sex," and then there is Greek, which has a beer-spewing volcano. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the shows, but at 7 and 8 pm, it really doesn't seem appropriate for the "family" crowd. Are they trying to become the WB?
Answer: Don't you mean the CW? And yes, as a matter of fact, I think the ABC Family execs would love to be confused with that network. (It's no accident this is the channel that picked up cable rights to shows like Everwood and Gilmore Girls.) Here we have an adolescent version of the Saving Grace question, as the "cable edge" applies to shows geared toward a tween and teen audience. ABC Family obviously is aiming for a spicier vibe than you're likely to find in the originals on Nickelodeon or the Disney Channel. I find it especially ironic that this is happening on a channel that continues to broadcast the holier-than-thou The 700 Club — a show that ABC Family's own website is forced to explain that the channel "is contractually obligated to air... and has no editorial control over views expressed by the hosts and guests."