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Abolish the Nine-Nine?

  • ACAB means ACAB

    Votes: 467 51.1%
  • 1312 in the streets, 99 in the sheets

    Votes: 270 29.5%
  • I'll lick Jake Peralta's fascist boots

    Votes: 177 19.4%

  • Total voters
    914

CatAssTrophy

Member
Dec 4, 2017
7,621
Texas
Because it wants you to think cops can be fun, lighthearted, open minded and progressive people who do a good thing for their communities. It's subconscious, and the NYPD has promoted it before in order to make themselves look good. I don't think it's especially effective propaganda but it's definitely not there to make the police look bad.

They also tend to lean into jokes that criminalize things that shouldn't be criminalized, namely sex workers.

pretty much my take.

i think it's just a hard pill to swallow for a lot of people. they want this show they really like to be the exception and ignore that it's part of the problem. and sorry, just because an episode here and there with progressive messaging doesn't make it all okay. if every single episode were like that? if that was the purpose of the show? sure, we can dissect it and debate whether it overcomes the propaganda it unintentionally puts out there, but currently it's a far cry from being on that level. at least in my opinion, and apparently many others.
 

Deleted member 3815

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
6,633
It presents a false image of police officers showing them to be cuddly softhearted people rather than a corrupt racist fascist organisation, so in a sense. It is propaganda.

Its the police version of Scrubs. So no, not really.

You think that it's possible for white people to be a victim of racism, so we already know how wrong and ignorant you are when it comes to these matter.
 

Jam

Member
Oct 25, 2017
7,051
Some of y'all lead some joyless overly critical lives.

The show isn't copganda, it's a largely goofy parody that often criticizes the police institution more than it praises it.
 

lvl 99 Pixel

Member
Oct 25, 2017
44,705
You think that it's possible for white people to be a victim of racism, so we already know how wrong and ignorant you are when it comes to these matter.

Because my family member was threatened after being in a suicide ward because of her ethnicity? You really want to try and take the moral high ground and call me out because of that? you're a real piece of work. Get the fuck out of my life.
 

Mekanos

▲ Legend ▲
Member
Oct 17, 2018
44,176
I don't care for the show much but it makes me wonder: Die Hard is in my top 10 movies of all time, is Die Hard copaganda?

Kinda. It had that one cop who shot a kid and you're supposed to feel sorry for him.

still one of the best action movies of all time and also in my top 10.
 

kmfdmpig

The Fallen
Oct 25, 2017
19,375
I don't care for the show much but it makes me wonder: Die Hard is in my top 10 movies of all time, is Die Hard copaganda?
I guess it probably is although since McClain is not really on duty and other than a few lines of dialogue it'd be perfectly easy for his career to be changed to anything else (firefighter, circus clown, miltary on leave, etc...).
 

brinstar

User requested ban
Member
Oct 25, 2017
10,272
I think by definition it is, but I personally don't have trouble enjoying it.
 

DanGo

Member
Oct 25, 2017
6,742
Yes but only in the way of the normal base and superstructure interaction. It isn't explicit propaganda.
This.

It's rarely just celebratory of police, and it frequently features corrupt police and criticizes some of the internal police issues. But it's certainly not subverting the broader ideal of modern policing in relation to the public.

It's also pretty damned harmless in comparison to the dozens of straight police dramas that are on the air.

Edit: I would also say that the show is usually at its best when it's just a workplace comedy and not really dealing with real policework.
 

gforguava

Member
Oct 25, 2017
4,705
It isn't 'copaganda' but it is part of the pop cultural 'copaganda' sphere, if that makes sense.

Maybe a cleaner way to say it is that B-99 isn't 'copaganda' because it isn't made to affect the audience's view on cops in any way but it is still a piece of media from a culture that lionizes them, and it will still affect the audience's view on cops and add to the pervasive 'copaganda' culture.
 

nded

Member
Nov 14, 2017
10,576
I enjoyed the episodes I've seen, but it's fantasy as far as I'm concerned.
 

Watchtower

Member
Oct 27, 2017
11,652
Ok, time to face facts, the majority of the cultural byproducts in a given society is propaganda. So yes.

Basically my take on it. Society treats policemen as good people in the same way that it treats firefighters and doctors and other public/civil servants as good people. So just about everything can be considered "copaganda" if you're vigilant enough.

Society needs to fundamentally change its views on the police for "copaganda" to not be the default state. Until then, maybe the Office-esque Andy Samberg sitcom is small pickings in the grand scheme of things.
 
Oct 27, 2017
42,700
Was carl winslow a bad cop?
We talking Family Matters Carl or Die Hard "Carl"?

Also, I used Scrubs as an analogy, but I think a more appropriate one is The Office where it'd be weird if someone asked the question "Is The Office propaganda for white collar jobs?". I guess I can get the argument in the sense that it does involve cops in a wholly unrealistic positive portrayal, and that's likely to have an affect on a segment of viewers, but still
 

Surakian

Avenger
Oct 27, 2017
10,872
It's not explicit propaganda. It is a consequence of the setting, not so much an intentional goal of the series. I doubt anybody in the writer's room was like "How do we make cops likable to trick people into liking cops?" More like "How do we make cops likable because they aren't in real life?"

It paints them in a goofy, fun light and that can in turn make people subconsciously think of cops in a more positive way than they might not have.

I don't think it goes in heavy as actual copaganda like Blue Bloods, CSI, or other police procedurals but it has the shades of it.

It doesn't try to paint cops as being perfect, though. It shows how fucked up the system is to minorities and favors mediocrity and corruption within their ranks.

I just started watching Brooklyn 99 like...last month...and I love it a lot. I don't think it should disappear from television. In fact, it should go in hard as a commentary on current events. Or, like it has been suggested on Twitter lately, just have the new season with everybody working at the US Postal Service as investigators. No comments on why they are suddenly working at the post office (maybe a vague reference to them all quitting/getting fired from the force because they all went and marched) Same background characters, even recurring characters appear and are also suddenly working for the USPS.
 

FaceHugger

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
13,949
USA
I don't know. But I do think cop dramas need to go away for a while. Hard to sympathize or even somewhat relate with them after seeing so many straight up terrorize people these past few weeks. Let alone the history of the US.
 

Juryvicious

Member
Oct 28, 2017
6,840
In recent days I've actually been thinking about that exact question to this show. Having watched every episode, 100% absolutely. It's subconscious propaganda. Part of its charm is how it presents a false image, narrative of police officers being fun, open minded, non-combative, non-aggressive and progressive individuals who do the right thing, good things for their communities. I can think of dozens of cop related comedies that fit this bill, and Brooklyn Nine-Nine is no different.
 

Pirate Bae

Edelgard Feet Appreciator
The Fallen
Oct 25, 2017
6,799
??
It's obviously not an accurate reflection of real police departments. I view it as more of a comedic, satirical take on law enforcement as a whole. So no, I don't think it's copaganda.
 

Sandfox

Member
Oct 25, 2017
24,743
In recent days I've actually been thinking about that exact question to this show. Having watched every episode, 100% absolutely. It's subconscious propaganda. Part of its charm is how it presents a false image, narrative of police officers being fun, open minded, non-combative, non-aggressive and progressive individuals who do the right thing, good things for their communities. I can think of dozens of cop related comedies that fit this bill, and Brooklyn Nine-Nine is no different.
B99 is weird in that regard because it paints every cop outside of the main cast as incompetent or evil people who don't deserve their positions. Any of the positives you see with the 99 being because of Holt's influence, which is motivated by him wanting to change the NYPD due to the discrimination he received in the first place.

I can see both arguments with this show. It's a weird one, especially when compared to other cop shows.
 

Deleted member 18944

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 27, 2017
6,944
Some of y'all lead some joyless overly critical lives.

The show isn't copganda, it's a largely goofy parody that often criticizes the police institution more than it praises it.
Pretty much this. Can't be copganda if it's so far removed from reality that it can't actually represent the thing it is based on.
 

lvl 99 Pixel

Member
Oct 25, 2017
44,705
Pretty much this. Can't be copganda if it's so far removed from reality that it can't actually represent the thing it is based on.

That seems to be the reasonable take, but someone still thought it was clever to call me out on something extremely personal and fucked up because of it and I doubt anyone cares.
 

Prax

Member
Oct 25, 2017
3,755
It's copganda.

It's enjoyable or easy to watch, but I wouldn't say the few progressive takes or "looks at the issues in a lighthearted manner" means it's "actually good/harmless".
Like I'm sure you wouldn't argue the same about how harem anime is just so unrealistic and just lighthearted fun that it's not really objectifying anyone or ameliorating misogynistic tendencies.

Sometimes shows liek that dig into our desires for how we wish the world could be, and we enjoy them for it, and hope a little bit that world is actually like that somewhere. I'm sure B99 taps into our wish for authorities for be "just like us" despite holding real power over most citizens. Also the crew in 99 do a bunch of illegal or not-to-code stuff and don't really get punished for it. They are just so fun and plucky they are allowed to get away with it all. Sure it's funny, but I'm not sure it spreads a great message when that type of absurdity is met with real life (like the cop falling off of a vehicle and pepperspraying the air--which you can imagine Scully or Hitchcock doing).
 
Last edited:
Nov 2, 2017
697
I see it like any workplace comedy My avatar is 80's Holt where he says "Punk" like he coined the term. Their jobs are just the mechanism to deliver jokes and shenanigans most of the time. They do have serious topics surrounding policing, but they also have serious topics that don't relate to police. If it was one of a few police centric shows on the air I would say yes, but seeing so many other shows that are over the top with with the stuff on regular network TV it doesn't register with me.
 

Deleted member 41502

User requested account closure
Banned
Mar 28, 2018
1,177
I adore the show and personally have not once taken the show seriously or believed cops were even capable of acting like that in real life. However, with that being said, I can see people's points when it comes to them saying yes.
I listened to the podcast earlier this year, and I think the writers/staff generally try to take the cop part kinda seriously. Like they want it to be "realistic". They get angry if there's episodes without a case going on, or if the characters aren't doing any real policework in an episode. I was surprised.

So yeah... I think its kinda just us naive white people playing what we think "good" cops are like.
 

caliph95

Member
Oct 25, 2017
35,187
It's a hilarious and heartwarming but probably would copropaganda
I always saw Brooklyn 99 as a fantasy of what if cops were liberal, kind hearted people that were funny to boot. It is exactly what a comedy writer would make a police force. Hitchcock is coded as the only trumper the audience interacts with, and is made fun of it accordingly. It is more influenced by other cop shows than any real life depiction of law enforcement.
They had an episode where Hitchcock and Scully kept an illegal immigrant from being deported by not putting them on as a witness funny so their not complete assholes
 

night814

One Winged Slayer
Member
Oct 29, 2017
15,040
Pennsylvania
It isn't 'copaganda' but it is part of the pop cultural 'copaganda' sphere, if that makes sense.

Maybe a cleaner way to say it is that B-99 isn't 'copaganda' because it isn't made to affect the audience's view on cops in any way but it is still a piece of media from a culture that lionizes them, and it will still affect the audience's view on cops and add to the pervasive 'copaganda' culture.
Yeah this is how I feel, it is to a degree but it's as far out on the edge it could possibly be.
 
Oct 27, 2017
2,471
brooklyn 99 is the worst type of copaganda, one that sells you a loveable fantasy of cops

Yeah. The notion of this lovable, quirky bunch of cops in the fucking nypd is something else tbh.

It would be interesting if they went the Archer route of the cast doing completely different careers together somehow.

The show would be much better off for it.

How do we feel about The Wire?

The takeaway from The Wire is definitely not that the Baltimore PD are the good guys, to say the least.
 

Kabuki Waq

Member
Oct 26, 2017
4,827
I don't know how anyone can watch the show and think it represents how precincts really are. I mean psych may be more realistic
 

Deleted member 31817

Nov 7, 2017
30,876
Of course it is, not sure how that's a debate. You can still enjoy it and find it funny but it takes one of the worst police departments in the world and makes them look progressive and goofy and fun.
 

Chiaroscuro

Member
Oct 25, 2017
3,695
I think it is a parody so dissociated from reality that it does not have the effect of normalizing police behavior or actually trying to sell them as good guys as propaganda would be. It is like considering Gotham a cop propaganda. Now Blue Blood....
 

Deleted member 31817

Nov 7, 2017
30,876
I don't know how anyone can watch the show and think it represents how precincts really are. I mean psych may be more realistic
Nobody thinks it's how precincts really are but it does help soften the image of the NYPD even if it's subconsciously
 
Oct 27, 2017
2,471
Of course it is, not sure how that's a debate. You can still enjoy it and find it funny but it takes one of the worst police departments in the world and makes them look progressive and goofy and fun.

Right? I feel like I'm losing my mind with some of these replies. It's fine to enjoy the show for what it is and I don't see any replies begrudging others for doing so, but let's not at the same time just scoff at the inherent problematic nature of the show and its setting.
 

Codeblue

Member
Oct 25, 2017
1,841
Not sure. If it is, I at least appreciate that they are willing to deliver messages on corrupt police and systemic racism in law enforcement to an audience that is largely ignorant and would pass over that information when delivered more directly.

The main cast certainly isn't an accurate reflection of law enforcement though.