ABC News' 'Made In America' Series Focuses On Boosting Amount Of American-Made Goods

ABC News is doing a series focusing on purchasing goods that were made in America--and the network is completely revamping one Texas family's home to see if it's even possible to only use products with the "made in the USA" sticker on them.

The series, called "Made in America," focuses on the increasing paucity of American-made goods in peoples' everyday lives. According to ABC News, just half of the products people use were made in the U.S.--and if 1 percent more were spent on American-made items, 200,000 jobs would be instantly created.

ABC's weekend anchor David Muir went to Dallas to meet the Usry family. In a report that aired Monday, the Usrys went through their house and discovered that nearly everything in it--from the stove to the Barbie dolls--was made in other countries. ABC then hired movers and removed everything not made in America from the house. In the next installment of the series, set to air Tuesday, all those items will be replaced with American-made goods.

WATCH:

Comments

[Institutionalized]

04:30 PM on 03/31/2011

Does ABC's news series "Made In America" objectively examine U.S. spending habits, or does it assign consumers blame that would be better aimed at major corporations?

Read our analysis:

WeAreInstitutionalized.blogspot.com

http://weareinstitutionalized.blogspot.com/2011/03/6-companies-run-your-whole-life-made-in_31.html

[Yellowbird]

02:10 PM on 03/21/2011

Funny how ABC News, an "American Corporation" suddenly turns the broken economy into the FAULT OF THE WORKERS AGAIN. By saying everything we buy is made elsewhere and BLAMING us for not doing the research and buying American, they foist the responsibility for our failed economy onto the backs of the workers of America once again.

We got cheated, lied to, and pillaged by our corrupt government. Our congress, courts, presidency, ALL OF IT.... is corrupt. Americans have already been sold down the river.

This is not America.

[Susan Placek]

05:21 PM on 03/06/2011

I started my own LinkedIn group some time ago - FORUM MADE IN AMERICA - for the purpose of of joining manufacturers and those interested in goods produced in the U.S.
If this is for you, come join and network with likeminded people. Here is the link to the group profile

http://www.linkedin.com/groups?about=&gid=2106630&trk=anet_ug_grppro

Together we are stronger.

[totalliberal]

03:24 AM on 03/04/2011

Labor costs about 12% of total manufacture costs.

[Joseph Patti]

12:09 AM on 03/04/2011

I HOPE THIS STORY HELPS ABC BECAUSE IT WONT HELP US AMERICANS..WHAT A JOKE.30 YEARS AGO I STARTED A CAMPAIGN TO BUY AMERICAN GOODS BUT PEOPLE THOUGHT I WAS FOOLISH.WELL HERE WE ARE.IT TOOK THE MEDIA ALL THESE YEARS TO FIGURE ALL THIS OUT AND NOW IT IS TOO LATE.SHAME ON ABC AND THE TOP BRASS TO TAKE A SUBJECT LIKE THIS AND RIDE IT TOO DEATH.??????(joep)

[totalliberal]

03:13 AM on 03/04/2011

No wonder you lost, you yell too much.

[Yellowbird]

02:15 PM on 03/21/2011

Thank you for being there for years and years and years. Just like me, many people have been out in the hinterland of America while the takeover by corporations was going on, yelling into the wind. As long as you continue to have ridiculous comments like "you yell too much" as the return for your message, the problem of economic stagnation will continue. I wonder how hungry and cold totalliberal has to become before he quits being like that?

[sasidechick]

12:07 AM on 03/04/2011

People have been trying to buy USA for years but it is so hard to find them as the series showed. I mean it took them 8 hours to track down a coffee maker and they had to furnish an entire house!!

Why doesn't the US CHAMBER OF COMMERCE have a listing of AMERICAN MADE PRODUCTS so that "We the People" can find out where I can buy a blanket etc., that wasn't produced with chemicals and who knows what else?

It has always been shown that the local members of the Chamber ARE the businesses that we want to deal with but the national Chamber is controlled by the companies who outsourced all the jobs to begin with. They wrap themselves in the flag and act like they represent the ol' man Smitty's furniture company when they are the ones killing him.

[Yellowbird]

02:17 PM on 03/21/2011

The US CHAMBER OF COMMERCE? HA HA HA HA HA ROFLMAO.

The US Chamber is not American anymore EITHER. It is a wholly owned foreign corporation, like all the rest.

WHEN will we cancel our trade treaties? Do we have to dismantle our nation to end these treaties? Or is there a way to back out of them because they FAILED to be fairly used?

[IMSickOfAllOfEm]

11:57 PM on 03/03/2011

Distracting the 'news' viewers with Charlie Sheen and this cr@p but no mention of the hundreds of thousands of protesters around the country.

[Yellowbird]

02:19 PM on 03/21/2011

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU.

I can't thank you enough. There is a total blackout of the REAL NEWS that is American Workers are marching in several states, standing in the cold, holding signs, peacefully protesting the takeover of our nation for days and days, weeks and weeks, without backing down. THAT is news, but we all KNOW who owns the news don't we.

Our country is gone. How else can our dictator call a WAR on Libya without consulting the Congress?

THIS IS NOT AMERICA.

[loki]

10:53 PM on 03/03/2011

should be Maid in America, since all the new jobs in America are just service jobs, taking care of others for minimum wage.

[David Caldwell]

09:52 PM on 03/03/2011

What a timely and important series! Thanks ABC for reminding people how important it is to support your own country. I would really like to see you expand to the foriegn car invasion.

[QolourCouture]

09:34 PM on 03/03/2011

This is stupid ..Why support American business when they have shown they don't care about us ?Please !

[David Caldwell]

09:56 PM on 03/03/2011

What a stupid thing to say!...........Do you drive a Toyota?

[QolourCouture]

11:38 AM on 03/04/2011

I have a Honda , but American Corps are outsourcing jobs to Indian , so why support them to help Indian economy stronger than ours? I make my decisions based or theories and facts , sorry of you don't understand whats really under the surface!

[David Caldwell]

10:19 PM on 03/07/2011

When will people understand that when they buy a car with a Japanese name on it, they are buying a Japanese car? Nothing about that car really attributes to the American economy!!

[bloodyhands]

10:30 PM on 03/03/2011

Buy from your local community.

[loki]

11:09 PM on 03/03/2011

thats great for some foods, and I do that. But who locally makes a MP3 or TV? Even a car, computers, cell phones, couches or curtains? How about Toys for my kids , shoes for my feet or clothes for my family? Most everything is outsourced. Just saying its an American based company, no longer means its American. Look at the car companies.

[QolourCouture]

11:35 AM on 03/04/2011

Of course I support Jim's key store over a big brand American store ..

[Andrew FingerlickingGree]

08:45 PM on 03/03/2011

Wait a minute.... there are things made in America...(besides financial instruments that is)?

[Joseph Patti]

07:33 PM on 03/03/2011

WHAT A JOKE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WHERE HAS ABC NEWS AND THE REST OF THE MEDIA BEEN FOR THE LAST 30 YEARS...IT HAS BEEN THAT LONG, OR LONGER SINCE THE FOREIGN PRODUCTS HAVE BEEN SHUTTING DOWN OUR MANUFACTURING..NOW ALL OF A SUDDEN THE MEDIA WANTS TO HELP OUR AMERICAN MANUFACTURERS.IT IS TOO LATE! WE ARE GOING TO BE A SERVICE ECONOMY .AND HOW DOES ABC GET A FREE RIDE ON THE NEWS AS SOMETHING LIKE THIS IS NOW A MOOT SUBJECT.I AM 72 YEARS OLD AND HAVE NEVER SEEN ANYTHING AS SAD AS THIS..... BANKS ARE CLOSING,HOMES ARE ABANDONED,PEOPLE ARE UNEMPLOYED,NOW ALL OF A SUDDEN THEY ARE WORRIED ABOUT ARE ECONOMY...IF IT WASNT SO SAD I WOULD LAUGH...JOEP.P.S TO THE SENIORS OUT THERE WOULDNT THE 3 PERCENT S.S. RAISE BEEN HELPFUL ABOUT THIS TIME?????????????

[Andrew FingerlickingGree]

08:47 PM on 03/03/2011

I agree. Good luck with them finding stuff that is "made" in America.

[QolourCouture]

09:35 PM on 03/03/2011

I agree ...I can't deal with the fake @55 Media anymore ..And they wonder why Bloggers are taking over journalism ..

[kathleen frey]

07:16 PM on 03/03/2011

They said they could not find a coffeemaker made in the USA but less than a minute of searching on the web found two that say they are made in the USA: Bunn and Grindmaster, and I am sure there are more. I wonder why they searched for hours and never found one. I just searched 'coffee makers made in the USA'.

[loki]

11:17 PM on 03/03/2011

You need to look again. Bunn doesnt make them here in the USA. They sell them, their headquarters are here, and they have warehouses here. but manufacturing is completely off shore with the exception of a few of the specialized commercial units.
Grindmaster-Cecilware Co. makes some of the higher priced and commercial units here, but again, the lower cost ones are off shore manufacturing.
Try again...


Oh, and even if a normal working family wanted one of those US made coffee makers, they would have to fork out at least $600 bucks for it. I doubt that would be in their budget.

[Robert Sloan]

11:14 AM on 03/03/2011

Under the Federal Prison Industries Enhancement Certification Program (PIECP) 18 USC 1761(c) U.S. manufacturers are partnering with prison industries in 43 states to use cheap prison labor to make the products many use daily. Boeing, McDonalds, Wendy's, AT&T, Nortel and the list goes on, are involved. The products are supposed to be clearly marked as made in a prison facility, but the law is ignored. Instead prisoners put labeling on proudly proclaiming "Made in the U.S.A.". Thousands of civilian jobs are now in prison being done for pennies on the dollar. Bob Sloan, Prison Industry Consultant - www.piecp-violations.com

[doctordoubt]

11:19 AM on 03/03/2011

I thought they just made license plates

[Robert Sloan]

12:51 PM on 03/03/2011

Hardly - take a quick look at the "Recruiting" video put out by the NCIA, BJA and Department of Justice, to get more U.S. manufacturing to move entire operations into prison industries: http://www.minncor.com/partnershipvideo.wmv and the corporations and products made and sold here: http://correctionalindustriesbuyersguide.com/index.php and here: http://correctionsmarketplace.com/index.php. Currently 93,000 prisoners making the products sold by these corporations to U.S. and foreign consumers. It's not just China anymore, we're now competitive on the world prisoner labor market.

[MJinCanada]

11:40 AM on 03/03/2011

Fanned for beating me to that comment and stating it better.

Folks -- this is where your manufacturing jobs are going, to taxpayer subsidized for-profit prisons. This is also why you have more people in prison per 100,000 than any other country in the world.

[loki]

11:31 PM on 03/03/2011

so if you want a job in America, do a crime?

[loki]

11:41 PM on 03/03/2011

I wish you in canada would turn on the heat more. Id love to move there, but I hate the freezing cold. Then again, I guess it does keep the riff raff out.