Judge Judy Meets Fear Factor

Reality TV has invaded Iraq, courtesy of the American taxpayer, in the form of the popular show Terror in the Hands of Justice. Doug Ireland writes:

One of the most hate-inducing aspects of this TV series: the confrontations between alleged victims of the "terrorists" or their families, and those who are supposed to have committed the crimes against them. The alleged victims cry for vengeance—"Do with him what you will, kill him, crush him," cries one hysterical woman into the camera. This highly manipulative (and manipulated) TV series is intended to whip up a lynch-mob mentality among viewers—and it does so to great effect….

The Financial Times…relates that the word mujahid—meaning "holy warrior"—has become street slang for homosexuals "after men claiming to be captured Islamist guerrillas confessed that they were holding gay orgies in the popular Iraqi TV programme."

Says the F.T., "The insurgents' confessions have become increasingly at odds with the movement's reputation for stringent Islamic austerity. Many Iraqis believe that the stern-faced officers of the 'Wolf Brigade', the Iraqi security unit that arrested most of the alleged terrorists, may have pushed the suspects—some of whom appear on the programme sporting bruises—to embellish their 'confessions'…"

UPI's Roland Flamini notes: "The fact that televised confessions are familiar to Iraqis from the Saddam Hussein regime makes some Iraqis uneasy, but also—ironically—makes the shows more plausible."