WTF? NBC Goes "Terrorist" Hunting

Posted by Tana Ganeva, AlterNet at 11:52 AM on July 14, 2009.

If I were to write one of those deep, post-modern satires illustrating the commodification of reality in our degenerate, hollow culture, it would go like this: ratings-hungry, unscrupulous TV execs pick up shady reality show that sends a former Navy Seal, Green Beret and reporter around the world to hunt “alleged terrorists". The cartoonishly rugged trio rides around in helicopters; they make dramatic pronouncements, such as “This is not just a show to me ... this is a mission.” Poorly sketched out, foreign-sounding people say threatening things. A group of blonde kids makes an appearance, symbolizing just what’s at stake. Often, the three heroes approach the camera in slow-motion. Electric guitar plays, underscoring their general bad-assness and rightness of cause.

Except that now I can’t, because it’s happening in real life. On July 20th, NBC (no, not Fox, NBC) is airing the first episode of "the Wanted", and I just basically described the premise and trailer of the show.

Some people — presumably people excited about the prospect of terrorists harming blonde children — complain that the show crosses ethical boundaries and may have some negative repercussions. The New York Times writes:

Some have even pre-emptively labeled the series “To Catch a Terrorist.” Last winter the Department of Homeland Security warned that NBC’s pursuit of a Maryland college professor on genocide charges could hurt the ability of law enforcement officials to enact actual, as opposed to televised, justice.

Also of concern to the people who want terrorists to win is the unseemly relationship between journalists and former intelligence officers featured on the show:

They say they find it troubling that “The Wanted” blurs the boundaries between government agents and supposedly impartial journalists. Lucy Dalglish, the executive director of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, asked simply, “Is this supposed to be journalism?”

Still others, who love terrorists even more than they love child molesters, are worried that the show raises some of the same ethical issues as “To Catch a Predator”, an earlier NBC dateline program that ambushed alleged child predators in their homes. Last year, NBC settled a lawsuit from the family of a man who committed suicide as NBC producers approached his house.

But don't worry! The Times reports that NBC would not be liable for any problems that could potentially arise from meddling in intelligence work and enacting vigilante justice around the world:

By licensing the program from Echo Ops, NBC may be able to sidestep some of the legal and ethical questions that followed “To Catch a Predator.” An NBC News spokeswoman said that “The Wanted” followed the news division’s ethical guidelines to the letter.

(Whether or not something can get you sued, of course, being a litmus test for what is ethical or humane.)

And finally, the 100th horrifying thing about this:

The series could “play into the hands of those who say that there is no such thing as independent journalism in the U.S., that everybody who’s working abroad is working in concert with the U.S. government.” according to a media ethics professor quoted in the Times.

How could that possibly go wrong?

Tagged as: terrorism, nbc, the wanted, manhunt