Posted on 01/23/2007 8:10:20 AM PST by Right_Wing_Madman
For Senior Jonathan Goldstein, Monday nights from 9-10 p.m. are off limits for everything except FOX’s hit drama, “24.”
“My friends know not to call me during that hour,” he said. “It’s not that I’m anti-social about it, I’ll watch it with other people. I just want to be fully focused on what’s happening.”
As most people familiar with the show already know, Goldstein is hardly alone. Since its debut in 2001, “24” has become one of the most popular and compelling shows on television. Its debut this season garnered 33 million viewers and the DVD sales of its past seasons are one of the highest of any serial. Even at Stanford, where many people yearn for the days when watching plenty of TV was easy, students readily rearrange their schedules to make time for “24.”
“I have multiple friends trying to cram seasons of the show into a matter of weeks to catch up for the new season,” Goldstein said.
Each season of “24” focuses on one day in the life of counter-terrorism agent Jack Bauer, with each episode showing a one-hour real-time segment of that day. Much of the popularity is generated from the fast-paced action and constant sense of anticipation, as Bauer has to race, puzzle-solve and, more than anything else, fight his way to the end of the day — which usually results in saving the United States from a terrorist inflicted disaster.
Yet despite the show’s enormous entertainment value — and we admit that it is addictive — whether you are a devoted longtime fan, or just getting into the series, it is important to pause and consider how the show may influence the way audiences think about current events.
On the positive side, the show constantly raises issues like civil liberties and national security, and portrays political debates with obvious allusions to real politicians. These plot points bring important issues to the attention of viewers who may not regularly follow current events, making fans of “24” more likely to show interest when similar issues appear in the news.
But at the same time, there is the possibility that “24” could replace news altogether for some viewers, and the over-dramatized events it presents to keep the adrenaline flowing could pervert the public’s sense of reality by creating a constant sense or paranoia that is good for ratings, but not necessarily for the general interest.
The pervasiveness of torture in many of the seasons distracts from the seriousness of the matter. Bauer often has to extricate information from terrorists by painful means that would probably fit any textbook definition of illegal interrogation. But because Bauer is the good guy and has to work fast to save the day, it often becomes too easy to ignore any moral implications of his actions, and accept the idea that everything he does is for the greater good.
Furthermore, the constant portrayal of Muslim terrorists as the source of threat opportunistically plays off the public’s fears and perpetuates existing stereotypes that all Arabs and Muslims are terrorists.
Though most Stanford students are able to separate the entertainment value of the series from its factual content, not taking many of the over-the-top plot twists as credible depictions of the current political atmosphere, next time you watch “24,” it is worth considering exactly how these elements play into the excitement. We are confidant that our peers can make the distinction between a fictional show and real life, and we hope the rest of the 33 million viewers will be equally discerning.
Last night's show was pretty good. Jack Bauer has to torture his own brother to find loose nukes.
I didn't see that coming!
My wife and I both said, "No way!", when that guy turned out to be Jack's brother! Not sure of the actor's name, but he may be the best nasty character actor of the last decade. He was "Rocket", the surgeon on "ER", and you just wanted to punch the guy most of the time.
Well we can certainly see why Jack and them weren't on speaking terms.
I couldn't wait for Jack to do just that last night.
It is interesting that when Dan Quayle worried about the societal impact of Murphy Brown being an unwed mother, the left laughed at him and said that it was only a TV show.
Now when a popular TV show shows a view different from what they espouse, they seem to think that TV shows can impact society.
Which is it?
I don't know..I didn't watch last night yet, but the first few episodes started to aggravate me this year. Of course you have to suspend disbelief in this show, but this year, they are pushing the envelope. The "ridiculousity" factor is almost too much for me already.
Point #1:
The 'fear' of the American public regarding islamo-fascist terrorists is based on history and reality. Note to the editor: Admission to Stanford is a laudable accomplishment, and indicative of a reasonable intellect. It does NOT give you a monopoly on common sense - it does not take a PhD to understand the difference between fiction/drama and reality. No one is mistaking "24" for news. Allusions to such nonsense make YOU sound like the idiot.
Point #2:
To those who have given an oath and are willing to sacrifice their own lives in order to save this nation and her citizens there is not a lot of moral quandry regarding torture in a real time situation. Note for the record - these situations do happen, maybe not at home, but in the sands of Iraq and Afghanistan real time intelligence is everything. Knowing that you are crossing a line, and knowing that you may be sacrificing your own freedom when all is said and done is not a long leap when the alternative is death and destruction for you and/or others/
...makes me want to go back and review last year.
He looks like an Opie that didn't have a very good childhood in Mayberry.
"Furthermore, the constant portrayal of Muslim terrorists as the source of threat opportunistically plays off the public’s fears and perpetuates existing stereotypes that all Arabs and Muslims are terrorists."
I'm not sure the author watches 24. The terrorists have only been Muslims in a few seasons. Furthermore, the show always portrays many arabs/muslims as good guys. For example, this season has an arab woman working for CTU and Sherry Palmer's (Muslim) boyfriend is willingly going undercover in a detention facility to help expose a terrorist cell. And (atleast at this point), Hassad, a recovering terrorist, is helping CTU find Fayed and the other nukes.
Regardless, the reality of today is that most terrorists who are actively trying to destroy America ARE muslims! If the shoe fits, put it on...
Of course, if the same thing happened with Algore's "Inconsistent Truth," Stanford would think that THAT would be a good thing.
Anybody besides me think that Jack's brother's son is really....Jack Bauer's son????
I watched that show for the first time last night.
WOW. I'm now a fan. Haven't been this "into" a show since Alyssa Milano started "developing" on Who's the Boss.
It is interesting that when Dan Quayle worried about the societal impact of Murphy Brown being an unwed mother, the left laughed at him and said that it was only a TV show.
Now when a popular TV show shows a view different from what they espouse, they seem to think that TV shows can impact society.
Which is it?
Rule 1 of Liberalism: Facts, logic, and consistency are irrelevant.
Um, thanks for the spoiler warning! /sarc
I don't think Sherry's boyfriend is going to last too much longer.
At Christmas I talked to my cousin who had seen the movie and he was completely taken in. Fortunately my sister is a meteorologist and she was able to deprogram him.
Regards, Ivan
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