Criminal Minds

It’s a harsh world we live in when television shows are awarded because of their portrayal of torture. Human Rights First chose to create their Excellence in Television award because of the prevalance of torture on tv. According to their statistics, incidents of torture on tv have increased greatly since 2000.

I became aware of this because of its connection to Criminal Minds. Of course, the episode that was recognized was “Lessons Learned,” in which Gideon interviews a Guantanamo Bay detainee. Also nominated were The Closer, The Shield, Lost, and Boston Legal. On HRF’s website, you can view clips of each of these shows, as well as a 14 minute feature on torture in television. (This is very interesting.)
What I found equally as interesting was all the criticism surrounding 24 and torture. I should say that I have never seen 24 - in which a season follows the course of events of one single day- so this was surprising to me. Everytime I would read about torture and television, 24 inevitably showed up.

Joel Surnow is the executive producer of 24. In his office is an American flag that once flew in Iraq. It was presented to Surnow by soldiers who had shared a collection of 24 DVDs.
In a recent New Yorker article, Surnow says:

The military loves our show. People in the Administration love the series, too. It’s a patriotic show. They should love it….Isn’t it obvious that if there was a nuke in New York City that was about to blow—or any other city in this country—that, even if you were going to go to jail, it would be the right thing to do?

24 creates a sense of urgency - each hour of the show represents an hour in the lives of the characters. Without a digital countdown clock, split screens, and immenent disaster, tension builds until it seems logical, patriotic, and even necessary to torture information out of people.
Surnow acknowledges that the show is formed from people’s anxieties, their fear of being attacked. “America wants the war on terror fought by Jack Bauer. He’s a patriot.” Of course he always saves the day. Why wouldn’t we want someone like him working on our side?
This attitude reaches all the way up - as Surnow says, the Bush Administration loves the show.
From the New Yorker: “Not long after September 11th, Vice-President Dick Cheney alluded vaguely to the fact that America must begin working through the ‘dark side’ in countering terrorism.”
This dark side is sanctioned by the Bush administration. Through secret memos and decisions, harsh interrogation tactics have been authorized. They found that “combined effects” were allowed. This means that the interrogators could use physical measures along with psychological ones to extract information. Among the physical tactics are head slapping, simulated drowning, and frigid temperatures. “Enemy combatants” are sometimes short-chained to the floor or in a fetal position with out food or water. Sleep deprivation and extremely long interrogations are also allowed. The New York Times has an extensive article on this.
But still, if a little sleep deprivation and a day without food or water is necessary to prevent an attack, why not? Professional interrogators agree that it does not work. It is not an effective means of getting information. And, oh yeah, it is inhumane. But concentrating on the effacacy: even the co-creater of 24, Bob Cochran, acknowledges that the situations in the show are not true to life.

Most terrorism experts will tell you that the ‘ticking time bomb’ situation never occurs in real life, or very rarely. But on our show it happens every week

Col. Herrington, a veteren interrogator, said on NPR that in his entire career he’d never come across a “ticking time bomb” type of situation. They simply do not happen, he says.

By using talking and nonviolent techniques, and by treating the detainee as a person, information is more forthcoming. This may sound naive but it’s said again and again by military interrogators who have done this for decades.
It is true that it is entertainment - it’s a television show. But the harm comes when young soldiers or recruits watch 24 and shows like it and think that’s the way the world works. And they do watch it, as Surnow proudly states. In Rachel Thomas’s TV Dramas blog, she writes:

Some U.S. soldiers have even gone so far as violating the Geneva Convention, citing the entertainment industry as the catalyst.

U.S. Army Brigadier General Patrick Finnegan, the dean of the United States Military Academy at West Point, flew to California in November to meet with the producers of 24. He believes that the show adversely affects American soldiers.

The kids see it, and say, ‘If torture is wrong, what about “24”?’ ” The disturbing thing is that although torture may cause Jack Bauer some angst, it is always the patriotic thing to do.

Another interesting point that I read was that extremists will not talk. If they are willing to die for their cause, they will not break down during torture.
Jane Mayer, in her New Yorker article writes:

Cochran (24’s co-creator) demanded to know what the interrogators would do if they faced the imminent threat of a nuclear blast in New York City, and had custody of a suspect who knew how to stop it. One interrogator said that he would apply physical coercion only if he received a personal directive from the President. But Navarro (an FBI expert on questioning techniques), who estimates that he has conducted some twelve thousand interrogations, replied that torture was not an effective response. “These are very determined people, and they won’t turn just because you pull a fingernail out,” he told me. And Finnegan argued that torturing fanatical Islamist terrorists is particularly pointless. “They almost welcome torture,” he said. “They expect it. They want to be martyred.” A ticking time bomb, he pointed out, would make a suspect only more unwilling to talk. “They know if they can simply hold out several hours, all the more glory - the ticking time bomb will go off!”

This is why, in “Lessons Learned,” Gideon has to lie to the detainee. He knows that he will not give up any information otherwise. Not through talking, and definatley not through torture.

There is a lot of information out there on this topic - it’s so important. How the US treats detainees influences the rest of the world’s opinion of us. It seems like the current administration thinks that life is a tv show and that they have to get the bad guys before they get us - and so they can use whatever method they want, including severe physical and emotional pain to get answers to their questions. It’s a scary world that we live in and we live in fear of a terrorist attack. We should also fear losing our humanity.