I was looking at my TV Guide last week and was enjoying the various articles. So many good topics and subjects. This particular publication has been something I’ve valued since I was a kid. But as I embraced the content, I came across the week’s ratings… and something punched me in the face. As a person in prison, certain things tend to jump out at you and one of those for me was the number of police/court dramas listed in the popularity ratings. It was 9 of the top 13…

Why are people this fascinated with crime and the fanciful methods to portray it? Does this say something about the voyeuristic nature of people? Does it ring a bell of the destruction of communities that happens by “normalizing” crime in primetime entertainment? Ponder that for a second… entertainment. Crime as entertainment. That is a moral degradation of society. I get that I, a person in prison, don’t have any room to talk about the subject because it sounds hypocritical, but I want you to know that if crime entertains you, it entertains those in here who refuse to see the moral high ground and rehabilitate. If network television executives had a soul, they’d end every program showcasing community destruction and celebrate something far more positive (education shows would be a great place to start). And if the people who add to the Nielsen ratings could find better things to watch, they might put more programming on that would influence the prison population to do better. If you want to celebrate policing and the justice system, pay your taxes and follow your state legislation closely. Just food for thought…

by Rory Andes

Society’s moral compass needs a tune-up…

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