My Take on FOX's '24' Ethics

The Press-Enterprise: By any means necessary
For '24's' Jack Bauer, justice comes with a price -- and Americans are OK with it

"I watch the show because it entertains me, not because I think it's OK or cool to let terrorists release extremely lethal nerve gas into the ventilation system of a mall in order to keep them from exposing more people later," said Charles Hueter, a self-proclaimed libertarian anarchist and Texas blogger in a recent e-mail. Hueter wrote about "The '24' Embrace of Contemporary Politics" on his blog, Magnifisyncopatholigical.

© 2006, The Press-Enterprise Company

This whole getting interviewed by a newspaper thing is still odd to me. I can understand the misspelling of my website's name, though. Magnifisyncopathological is just a bit unwieldy.

I have been watching this season of 24 and there is no shortage of things to discuss about it, but I just haven't really had the heart. Fundamentally, the show is no different than before. The principles I have still apply and the characters are still doing their thing. The last three episodes have been highly illustrative of this. I'll probably miss tonight's show but now that the threat of deploying nerve agent on American soil has been engaged, I expect the pattern will continue: commit horrors in the name of stopping horrors.

Helene Blatter sent me an e-mail requesting an interview based on what she read from my post, The 24 Embrace of Contemporary Politics. She asked:

• Did you (and do you still) believe that the writers/producers of "24" were/are trying to promote a political agenda?
  If yes, in what way?
  If no, why not?
  
• Whether or not this is the writers/producers intention, do you think shows such as "24" desensitize Americans to the idea of torture?
  
• Some have suggested that the fact that the show is so popular means our society must condone torture. Do you think this is true or is it possible to enjoy the show for its entertainment value alone?
  
• Are there other ways, aside from the "ends justify the means" torturing that the show reflects "contemporary politics"?
  
• Are you still watching this season? Can you describe a particular moment this season that stands out to you as an example of these issues?

My answers:

I do not know whether the writers and producers of '24' have a specific political agenda. I think it is entirely possible for artists to produce material that has a message cutting against the grain of their beliefs, though it isn't likely. If you care about your values, you tend to pursue them in many avenues. Given the demigod status of Jack Bauer (specifically his almost unfailing ability to make correct judgments and act upon them with considerable effectiveness) and given we can assume the majority of the show's audience wants to see Bad Guys stopped and innocent lives saved, I think it is fair to say the people behind '24' at least sympathize with their protagonist's ethical code, a code that is shared by nearly everyone with whom he works. Very few characters in '24' offer fundamentally principled objections - going deeper than just worrying about illegalities - to the overwhelming pragmatism everyone else holds true and those objecting tend to be young adults or female.

Rather than political agenda, I think the writers and producers of '24' are generally mirroring the thoughts of a significant majority of Americans: it is sometimes acceptable to not only break the law but to hurt and even kill those who have not harmed you, as long as something positive for the "greater good" can be secured. Since lots of people think the ends do justify the means in many cases, it isn't surprising to see a popular TV program passively accept that premise. Unfortunately, "greater good" has never been adequately defined except as favoring a larger group's interests over a smaller group's or
individual's. The tyranny implied in that is why I wrote "[this is the] important step towards the complete disregard of morality."

It's hard to say whether '24' desensitizes viewers with it's depiction of torture. What we've seen is certainly painful: manipulating a ruined musculo-skeletal joint, the shooting of a detainee in the leg, etc. I don't recall any of the victims stoically enduring the pain and holding out...they all eventually gave in to the agony. We see blood and we see the torturer grappling with his choice, usually giving the suspect a few chances to talk before resorting to violence.

We see a lot of realistic violence on TV but most of it doesn't deal with torture. In that sense, it does desensitize some people somewhat who might have expected it to be worse. Overall, though, since torture is still considered a necessary *evil* in the '24' universe, I don't think it has numbed too many people.

I do not think that a popular TV show implies its audience agrees with every major aspect, concept, or implied argument made by the writers and producers. I am evidence of this. I watch the show because it entertains me, not because I think it's OK or cool to let terrorists release extremely lethal nerve gas into the ventilation system of a mall in order to keep them from exposing more people later (that occurred this season). Similarly, I think it is inherently fallacious to ascribe to an entire society such beliefs. American "society" is relentlessly diverse and shifting because it is composed of individuals with free will.

On the other hand, from my rather extreme political standpoint, varying majorities of Americans *do* endorse torture...the torture of imprisoning people for not paying taxes, not getting government permission to drive your car on public roads, and for not submitting to the bewildering array of regulatory paperwork in order to run a business.

Contemporary politics, as I meant it in the post last April, encompasses specific situations and belief systems (hypothetical and real) that are currently in conflict with each other. '24' has elements that mirror or echo what we see around us. The constant Doomsday Scenarios; the danger posed by foreign hate and domestic treason; the tension between hurting loved ones and doing what you think is right; the adamant creed to never negotiate with terrorists; the pressures posed by the media on government decision makers; the pressure posed by senior executives on people beneath them in rank.

I've watched every episode this season except the one aired on the 27th of February. I missed it and it didn't get taped. However, so far there have been a number of examples that I think stay true to the above: the nerve gas in the mall, the contortions of the President on the issue of letting the terrorists attack the Russian convoy, the process of bringing Jack back on board with CTU because he knows how to get things done (*wink wink*), and of course the actions of the terrorists.

Keep in mind I sent these answers to a stranger writing up an article for a newspaper based outside Los Angeles, so I had to consider my audience while responding.

Posted by Drizzten at March 13, 2006 09:42 AM