Am I the only one who has noticed lately the rash of TV shows that chronicle criminal activity to the extreme? I wrote a few of them down: Gang Wars: Oakland I, Prison Wives, Behind Bars, Lockup Boston, and San Quentin: Inside the Big House. If you don’t notice them now, don’t be fooled. They’ve backed off a bit since Christmas is just around the corner.
People love do-it-yourself shows so they must like Moonshiners. It’s always interesting to see how the old timers made their liquor - even more so if the show is highlighted by someone with no teeth spitting his brew into a roaring fire. I believe television executives also see a two-for-one bargain in this particular story; generate sympathy for the lawbreaker and create disdain for his law abiding kin. Moonshiners and a host of programs over the years reinforce the unfortunate stereotype of hill people as being lazy and backward. Hollywood loves to do that if they can find a minority that won’t or can’t fight back. One step beyond Hee Haw and the Beverly Hillbillies appears to be an acceptance and even an admiration of vice.
Perhaps the media class regards pot as being benign as they do moonshine; after all, that’s how Joe Kennedy got his start and how marijuana became their gateway drug. Pot heads should enjoy Marijuana Outlaws and Marijuana USA because they show how to overcome adversity (breaking the law) and profiting from the experience. Pot becomes just another commodity. We saw recently post-election celebrations of pot heads lighting up in hallucinatory bliss. Television is also awash with stories of cocaine, crystal meth, and heroin trafficking by Mexican cartels using all kinds of smuggling schemes including tunnels, submarines, and even catapults to fling their dope across the border.
I haven’t made a study of these television shows and I can’t review them all, but a socially redeeming quality seems to be missing. Where’s the FCC? Libertarians may be shocked, but most Americans believe in rules and not in “If it feels good, do it.” As “progressive” as Communists were, Stalin imprisoned thieves and Mao disposed of the drug trade the hard way.
Popularizing or defending the actions of the worst elements is a losing proposition. I think what we are seeing is a softening up process that goes beyond ratings. There seems to be a genuine feeling of sympathy for these people. At least Cops always ended with the assertion that crime doesn’t pay.
