The folks behind “Hawaii Five-O” couldn’t have written a more anti-gun episode than the recent “Ke Ku ‘Ana.”
That’s assuming they wrote it all by themselves.
The show in question featured a mass shooting by a disturbed young man. The man’s father, distraught at his son’s actions, takes his vengeance out on those “gun nuts” and the powerful political players who won’t do more to stop gun violence.
What follows is dialogue that sounds more like an anti-NRA ad than a network TV show, according to Newsbusters.org. Here’s a sample:
Father of the shooter: The gun industry can stop it; they choose not to! The gun industry doesn’t police itself. The politicians don’t do their jobs. And on it goes, and on and on and on! It’s got to end!
Danny (Scott Caan): I agree with you 100%, okay? I am a cop. I am outraged at how easy it is to get a gun, no questions asked. As a father, I’m even more outraged.
As Newsbusters points out, the killer obtained the gun in question illegally. So it’s hard to blame those evil NRA types or the politicians allegedly in the group’s pocket for this crime.
The killer broke the law. People died.
Should we chalk it up to another anti-gun lecture from Hollywood? It’s not that simple. Earlier this year, we learned the anti-gun group Everytown for Gun Safety is directly involved in some of the shows you watch on TV and streaming sites.
The group teamed with Netflix’s “House of Cards” to develop its own gun control-themed story line, advising the show’s creative team on just how to pen it. It wasn’t an isolated incident. The smash series “The Good Wife” also broadcast anti-gun messages, courtesy of Everytown’s silent script doctoring.
Everytown, as well as the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence and other groups, are increasingly working with entertainment figures to keep their legislative goals in the public eye.
That means consulting with screenwriters to inject their messages into the narrative. Does anyone doubt Everytown’s fingerprints didn’t touch that “Hawaii Five-O” script?
It’s all pretty rich coming from Hollywood. The biggest stars enjoy the protection of armed security guards to keep them safe. And they constantly peddle stories teeming with gun violence, often the kind that glorifies the destructive might of weaponry.
That doesn’t impact the culture, artists cry. It’s just stories. Yet when it’s time to move the needle on public opinion, stars turn to those same, innocuous “stories,” to send a clear message to the masses.
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