‘Modern Family’ ad placement emphasizes storytelling

The show’s often bumbling father, Phil Dunphy, has always been employed as a real estate agent on the show, but last week he came out as a “Realtor.”

The distinction—Realtor with a capital R—has been one that the National Association of Realtors has been touting and stressing for many years now.

Product placement is nothing new in sitcoms. The family in another ABC show, “Black-ish,” has talked up their fancy Buick multiple times, for example—but the Realtor move on “Modern Family” is different because it was a central key to a storyline in the episode.

From The Associated Press:

In the episode that aired Wednesday, the Dunphy character twice makes the point that he’s a Realtor. Dunphy wins a battle with Gloria Pritchett’s nemesis by confronting her with insider knowledge gleaned from his profession: that there’s been illegal construction on the woman’s property, and her grandson is attending an out-of-district school.

Here’s the scene:

Realtors are just your everyday superheroes, NBD. https://t.co/r22zalj5Rc