Denial in Hollywood

Sometimes when a person does not acknowledge the influence he has on others, humility plays a role. The person simply might not see himself as deserving of the type of attention that leads to influence. But Hollywood is generally not known for its humility. So, when the lead writer of the TV show "24" says “I think people can differentiate between a television show and reality" in reference to weekly scenes from the show that depict illegal methods of torture conducted by U.S. government agents, I refuse to believe humility plays a role. Rather, this is denial, on the grandest and most irresponsible scale, of the power that television has over the acquisition of knowledge by most Americans.

Torture, "24," and the allegedly unintentional impact the show has on American military training is the subject of a fascinating article in the most recent New Yorker.

I was going to write much more about this, which I will as soon as time permits. In the meantime, just read this article.