By ‘focusing on the family,’ James Dobson helped propel US evangelicals back into politics – making the Religious Right into the cultural force it is today

James Dobson, founder of Focus on the Family, participates in the National Day of Prayer ceremony at the White House on May 3, 2007. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

For decades, one name was ubiquitous in American evangelical homes: Focus on the Family. A media empire with millions of listeners and readers, its messages about parenting, marriage and politics seemed to reach every conservative Christian church and school.

And one man’s name was nearly synonymous with Focus on the Family: James Dobson.