This week on "24," I watched Jack Bauer continue his descent into madness and kill four people before violently torturing and killing a fifth. And you know what? I loved it. I am against using even the mildest torture techniques against enemy combatants and I cannot personally condone Jack's actions, but damn do I get excited when he starts shooting people. That's why I become particularly upset whenever critics think it is meritorious to debate the ethics of "24."
The arguments vary. Some commentators, such as columnist Philippe Sands of The Guardian, claim that the show has promoted the use of torture in anti-terror efforts among interrogators, notably at Guantanamo Bay. Top U.S. military officials agree, arguing that watching "24" encouraged soldiers to believe that it's "patriotic" to torture prisoners. It would seem that Jack's imagined antics have become a threat to this nation.
As loathe as I am to accost soldiers, that these arguments can even be seriously brought up is an embarrassment to anyone who has ever watched television before. We sometimes jokingly remind each other that the characters we see in our favorite shows are pure fiction, but it would seem that people really do need to be reminded that "24" is fiction. Television is supposed to represent an escape from reality; the true danger here is not the show itself, but the irrational beliefs we seem to develop based on television in general.
More than just the characters, these people need to be reminded that the entire environment of "24" is fictional. In the show's world, there is a 10-layered plot surrounding a nuclear, chemical or biological attack imminent at least once a year, with presidents often implicated (not to mention the fact that there have been nine acting presidents in eight seasons). Crazy 9/11 conspiracies aside, does that sound anything like our world? Would a man like Jack Bauer thrive in our world, where terror attacks usually take the form of cars parked in Times Square? I don't intend to make light of the dangerous attacks that we face quite the contrary, in fact. It would be easier if every terror plot had a Legion of Doom directing all of the attacks. Then at least there would be an enemy to defeat.
Debating the ethics of "24" is debating the ethics of a world that has little bearing on our own. The people who allow their personal beliefs in this world to be affected by an imaginary one are nothing short of fools. I welcome pro-torture arguments grounded in the politics of this world, but any interrogator who is inspired by Jack needs to be reassigned immediately.
This twisted form of "life imitates art" isn't limited to "24," though. After "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" became a hit, law enforcement agencies saw a spike in the number of forensics applicants they received. Of course, the sad truth many of these inspired applicants came to realize is that there isn't a thrilling story behind every dead body in a gutter.
Of course, these television shows carry commentary about our world. It's only natural to think that the writers of "24" are trying to present a different face of the War on Terrorism, and in my opinion, they'd be irresponsible artists if they didn't. The message of "24," though, is not to torture all bad guys for information. The writers of these shows exaggerate and downplay various aspects of their fictional worlds to convey their messages. In "24"'s case, the use of torture is exaggerated. How much more clearly can we see the critical flaws in Jack's character when we see him undergo trial after trial in his consciously self-sacrificing search for justice? Jack is the message, the warning of the program and anyone who wants to imitate him is a wanna-be martyr. Jack Bauer doesn't even want to be Jack Bauer.
We can turn our television dramas into documentaries about our world, but I just don't think we'll like what we see. When I tune in to "24," I'm looking to get away from the complicated ethics of the real world. I don't want to see a documentary on counter-terrorism efforts; I just want to see Jack Bauer kill some dudes and get a thrill out of it.
