An open letter to "CSI"

2007-02-10T14:55:50Z

A work in progress for sure, and one I plan to send within the next month. Please supply with additional points.

This is an open letter to thank you for:

Putting money-making and “popular” opinion ahead of art and integrity. Whatever happened to being true to your craft and sensitive to societal and cultural issues?
Setting the women’s movement back 30 years, particularly in the work place, by making an office romance between a supervisor and his female underling the new centerpiece of your story. How is this o.k.? I could take “Ally McBeal”, but not this!
Making a mockery of ethics and morals in the workplace and in healthy interpersonal relationships to please an emotionally-underdeveloped group of fans, actors, writers, and producers who simply want to see two characters “do it”.
Punishing a strong, healthy, intelligent, and beautiful female lead character by subjecting her to misery, particularly at the hands of men. Not only this, but having the lead male character/colleague essentially blame her for being a victim.
Attempting to fix yourself, for no reason, and instead breaking yourself by lowering your standards from being an innovative serial crime drama on a par with “Quincy”, “Columbo”, and “Law and Order” to a prime time soap on the same level as the horn dog fest “Grey’s Anatomy”.
Taking a good, decent, ethical lead male character and turning him into an office cliché or Benny Hill skit, whichever you prefer, because he is now just another dirty old man. The difference is that Benny Hill makes me laugh; Gil Grissom makes me cry.
Pandering to an egomaniacal executive producer/lead actor with no talent and who proves over and over again (particularly over the last 3 seasons) that he’d rather sit on his ass than grow and challenge himself as an actor and a man.
Rewarding bad behavior by keeping on a no-talent, homely, spoiled brat actress (who would rather play a weak, pathetic female who has based her life around a man) so that she can whine for money and threaten to quit. Again.
Ignoring substance for style over and over by not doing your research into forensic science, law enforcement, medicine, and the justice system. There are many specialties in forensic science and these other fields; explore them, don’t ignore them.
Increasingly dull story lines. Fan fiction is much better. Current events also make for good stories, so pick up a newspaper or magazine and get back to work.
Allowing a group of pathological fans to victimize an actress and her family for her character’s interactions with the lead male in the series because another female character is more favored.
Holding professional secrecy as a greater evil than an affair between a supervisor and an underling, even though the secrecy was exposed by the perpetrator herself.
Playing into incest fantasies by pairing a female character formerly represented as a “daughter” with the lead male character and “father”.
Feeling it is necessary to “pair people off” at every turn, particularly co-workers. Those of us who work in high-stress jobs do not want to take our work home with us, much less to bed.
Treating loyal, devoted fans like dirt by deceiving them about changes in the show.
Forgetting that the above-mentioned fans buy a great deal of your merchandise. What a way to rob yourself!
Alienating an entire profession (nursing) by representing us as homicidal, neglectful whores who are more interested in laying doctors than caring for patients and simply doing our jobs. We are the people who care for you 24/7 in the hospital, and we have families, etc. who would tear Average Joe to shreds for buying into this lie.
On the above note, forgetting that by introducing a forensic nurse, whether as a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner, Assistant Coroner, Expert Witness, ER Triage nurse, or even as “just” a floor nurse who knows his or her patient has been victimized is GREAT fodder for future stories.

ornrytigress

An open letter to "CSI"