Winging it
Three weeks after terrorists murdered thousands of people by flying hijacked airliners into New York’s World Trade Centre, a bright high school student stood in front of a senior American politician and asked, ‘Why is everybody trying to kill us?’
It was a fair question, given that it was on the lips of just about every US citizen at the time. However, this exchange didn’t take place in the real world. It was posed on the hit TV show The West Wing, and that fact sparked no little controversy. Some critics lauded the show’s producer Aaron Sorkin for bravely tackling this most sensitive of issues, others slammed him. The words ‘bad taste’, ‘exploitation’ and ‘condescending’ were all applied to the programme. Some questioned the arrogance of a TV producer who believed the world was waiting to hear his opinion on the tragic events.
But, in a world where the line between fantasy and reality is constantly being blurred by movie-makers and television script writers, was it really surprising that a TV programme should critically examine the issue of terrorism after 11th September?
For those of you who haven’t been glued to this American import – showing on E4 in Britain – the show is about the trials and tribulations of fictional US President Jed Bartlett, played by Martin Sheen, and his loyal team of White House staffers.
In essence, it’s a fantasy about what it would be like if a group of liberals came to power in the US. It speculates on what they might achieve and what obstacles they might face, in a nation where liberalism is equated with radicalism.
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