What about the accusation that Hollywood is trying to advance its liberal agenda? Well, the fact is, while the creative community admittedly leans left, Hollywood has become a corporate town.

I think that people with differing points of view find common ground in 'Modern Family' is very flattering, and I'm appreciative of that.

I believe 'Hollywood' is more like middle America than many people imagine.

With drama, especially, it seems like the bigger the budgets and the edgier the characters, the more interesting they are. We're very lucky because 'Modern Family' wouldn't fit on cable: they'd want us to push it more and be edgier and turn it into something that it's not.

I'm a little bit in shock, to tell you the truth.

Friends in the Midwest often ask me what it's like to raise a family in Los Angeles. I say it's just like where they are, but warmer and with more traffic. I also tell them people here seem a bit more tolerant of those who are different.

But at its core, 90 percent of my job is still sitting down in a room full of people, and breaking storiesand that requires virtually no technology.