A few years ago, I had the honor of traveling through Accra, Ghana. As I rode down a main avenue, images grabbed my attention. On one side of the street, African children wearing rags played in an open sewer. On the other side of the street, there was a towering billboard advertisement featuring palm trees, a beach, and a Caucasian man lowering sunglasses from his eyes. The ad was for actor David Caruso, starring in the television series CSI: Miami.
几年前，我有幸到加纳阿克拉旅行。我走在一条主路上，一个场景吸引了我的注意。在街道一侧，衣衫褴褛的非洲孩子们在一个开放的下水道里玩。在街道另一侧，高高的广告牌上有棕榈树、海滩，还有一个白人摘下戴着的太阳镜。这则广告上是演员大卫·卡鲁索，他主演了电视剧《犯罪现场调查：迈阿密》。
The dichotomy of images was a reminder not only of the international reach of American pop culture, but of the specific influence of TV police procedurals.
这种违和的场景体现了美国流行文化的国际影响力，以及电视警匪片的独特影响。
In Hollywood, I’m a rare creature. A black man who has made a career, in part, writing for network police shows, having eventually created my own show, S.W.A.T., for CBS. For me, writing television can never simply be about entertainment. many people in Hollywood have a fear of being didactic, preaching messages that risk making an audience feel uncomfortable. But, in the shadow of George Floyd’s death at the hands of Minneapolis Police Officers, a question persists—how are the shows we are writing contributing to perceptions of the justice system, class, race, and the image of black men? I look at this, not as a creative burden, but a necessary responsibility.
在好莱坞，像我这样的人不多。我这个黑人有了自己的事业，部分时间为网络警匪片写剧本，后来还为哥伦比亚影业公司创作了电影《反恐特警组》。写电视剧本对我来说决不仅仅是为了娱乐。好莱坞很多人都害怕说教，担心说教内容会引起观众不适。但是乔治·弗洛伊德死在一名明尼阿波利斯警察手中给社会造成了阴影，因而一个问题出现了：我们创作的影视作品能怎样影响人们对司法系统、阶级、种族和黑人形象的看法?我觉得这是必须承担的责任，而不是一个有创意的负担。
Traditionally, the domain of TV police procedurals has been as morality plays, where clear lines are drawn. The past 60 years have seen shows like Dragnet, The Untouchables, and Adam 12 establish a formula where, within an hour of story, good lawmen, also known as square-jawed white cops, defeat bad guys, often known as poor people of color. this stark clarity, indulging the idea of the hero cop, often provides a sense of satisfaction for some viewers in an otherwise complicated world. This can make for wildly popular entertainment, but also risks encouraging fantasies to be perceived as reality rather than idealized comfort food. People watch TV to see heroes, but how are we defining who a hero is? For people of color, especially black people, the viewing experience is complex.
传统上，电视警匪片一直是道德剧，情节明了。在过去的60年中，《Dragnet》、《铁面无私》、《Adam 12》等作品的套路是，开场不到一个小时，就会有执法的好人打败坏人，好人一般是方下巴的白人警察，坏人则是贫穷的有色人种。这种赤裸裸的暗示塑造的是英雄警察的形象，通常会给复杂现实世界中有些观众带来满足感。这能满足大众的娱乐方式，但也有风险，会让人们把幻想当成现实，而不是把它当成精神安慰。人们看电视是为了看英雄，但我们怎么给英雄下定义呢?对于有色人种，尤其是黑人，这种观影感受很复杂。
