Editing Norman Lear (section)

===People for the American Way===
In 1981, Lear founded [[People for the American Way]] (PFAW), a progressive advocacy organization formed in reaction to the politics of the [[Christian right]].<ref name=Brownstein1987/> PFAW ran several advertising campaigns opposing the interjection of religion in politics.<ref>{{cite magazine|last1=Day|first1=Patrick Kevin|title=Norman Lear Celebrates 30 Years of People For the American Way|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/norman-lear-celebrates-30-years-245672|access-date=May 6, 2015|magazine=The Hollywood Reporter|date=October 7, 2011|archive-date=January 25, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210125021431/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/norman-lear-celebrates-30-years-245672|url-status=live}}</ref> PFAW and other like-minded groups succeeded in their efforts to block Reagan's 1987 [[Robert Bork Supreme Court nomination|nomination of Robert Bork to the Supreme Court]].<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://variety.com/2011/biz/news/lear-sees-politics-the-american-way-1118046607/ |title=Lear sees politics the American way |last=Johnson |first=Ted |date=November 27, 2011 |magazine=Variety |access-date=August 18, 2020 |archive-date=September 18, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210918084317/https://variety.com/2011/biz/news/lear-sees-politics-the-american-way-1118046607/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Lear, a longtime critic of the Religious Right, was an advocate for the advancement of [[secularism]].<ref name=learrel09>[https://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/god-and-country/2009/02/10/interview-anti-christian-right-crusader-norman-lear-on-becoming-a-born-again-american Interview: Anti-Christian-Right Crusader Norman Lear on Becoming a 'Born-Again American'] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160710194107/http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/god-and-country/2009/02/10/interview-anti-christian-right-crusader-norman-lear-on-becoming-a-born-again-american |date=July 10, 2016 }} US News, Dan Gilgoff, February 10, 2009. Retrieved February 26, 2013</ref><ref name=learrel87 />

Prominent right-wing Christians including [[Pat Robertson]], [[Jerry Falwell]], and [[Jimmy Swaggart]] have accused Lear of being an [[atheist]] and holding an anti-Christian bias.<ref name=learrel09 /><ref name=learrel87>[http://normanlear.com/spirit_8.html A Profile of Norman Lear: Another Pilgrim's Progress] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141025130646/http://www.normanlear.com/spirit_8.html |date=October 25, 2014 }} Norman Lear.com, Martin E Marty. Retrieved February 26, 2013</ref> In the January 21, 1987, issue of ''[[The Christian Century]]'', Lear associate [[Martin E. Marty]] (a [[Lutheran]] professor of church history at the [[University of Chicago Divinity School]] between 1963 and 1998) rejected those allegations, stating the television producer honored religious moral values and complimenting Lear's understanding of Christianity.<ref name=learrel87 /> Marty noted that while Lear and his family had never practiced [[Orthodox Judaism]],<ref name=learrel87 /> the television producer was a follower of Judaism.<ref name=learrel87 />

In a 2009 interview with ''[[US News]]'' journalist Dan Gilgoff, Lear rejected claims by right-wing Christian nationalists that he was an atheist and prejudiced against Christianity. Lear held religious beliefs and integrated some evangelical Christian language into his Born Again American campaign. He believed that religion should be kept separate from politics and policymaking.<ref name=learrel09 /> In a 2014 interview with ''[[The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles]]'' journalist Rob Eshman, Lear described himself as a "total Jew" but said he was never a practicing one.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jewishjournal.com/cover_story/article/norman_lear_on_race_in_america_judaism_world_war_ii_and_his_bright_future|title=Norman Lear on race in America, Judaism, World War II and his bright future|work=The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles|first=Rob|last=Eshman|date=December 17, 2014|access-date=September 10, 2015|archive-date=September 6, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150906205739/http://www.jewishjournal.com/cover_story/article/norman_lear_on_race_in_america_judaism_world_war_ii_and_his_bright_future|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 1989, Lear founded the Business Enterprise Trust, an educational program that used annual awards, business school case studies, and videos to spotlight exemplary social innovations in American business until it ended in 1998. He announced in 1992 that he was reducing his political activism.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://buffalonews.com/news/a-false-picture-presented-of-hollywoods-role-in-politics/article_292e56c7-9e48-5e96-af4b-01af8224a97b.html |last=Lear |first=Norman |author-link=Norman Lear |date=July 12, 1992 |title=A False Picture Presented of Hollywood's Role in Politics |newspaper=The Buffalo News |access-date=August 12, 2020 |archive-date=November 5, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201105140939/https://buffalonews.com/news/a-false-picture-presented-of-hollywoods-role-in-politics/article_292e56c7-9e48-5e96-af4b-01af8224a97b.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2000, he provided an endowment for a multidisciplinary research and public policy center, the [[Norman Lear Center]], that explored the convergence of entertainment, commerce, and society at the [[USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2000-feb-23-fi-1577-story.html|title=A Major Academic Look at How Show Business Affects Real Life|last=Flanigan|first=James|date=February 23, 2000|newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]]|archive-url=https://archive.today/20231206173336/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2000-feb-23-fi-1577-story.html|archive-date=December 6, 2023}}</ref>

Lear served on the National Advisory Board of the [[Young Storytellers Foundation]]. He wrote articles for ''[[The Huffington Post]]''. He was a trustee of [[The Paley Center for Media]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.paleycenter.org/about-leadership-board-of-trustees/ |title=Board of Trustees |publisher=Paleycenter.org |access-date=April 22, 2013 |archive-date=April 21, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130421113003/http://www.paleycenter.org/about-leadership-board-of-trustees |url-status=live }}</ref>