After 20 years on the air, NBC's landmark police-procedural show Law & Order is closing up shop. Several members of the cast and crew were honored at the Alliance for Justice's annual luncheon for having brought issues of human rights to the fore.
The first episode of the last season, "Memo From the Dark Side," which aired Monday, portrayed the New York district attorney's attempts to hold a John Yoo-like character responsible for the use of torture during the Bush administration, as well as the current administration's efforts to dissuade prosecutors from pursuing the case.
Following the luncheon, TAP caught up with Law & Order producer René Balcer, who sounded off on torture, getting heat from conservative commentator Andrew Breitbart, and his desire to do a Law & Order episode on the al-Qaeda Seven.
What inspired you to do the torture episode?
These are issues I've been thinking about since I was 16. I lived in Canada, and I lived through a terrorist crisis [the Front de Libération du Qué in the 1960s], and I knew what it was like to have your civil liberties suspended. These were issues that concerned me. As far as the torture memos, that's an issue I've been talking about on Law & Order and Criminal Intent since 2005, 2004.
Did you get any heat for that show?
Well the usual suspects afterward, the Andrew Breitbarts and all that, the conservative blogs came after us, Michael Moriarty [who played the assistant district attorney when Law and Order first aired].
You've gotten criticism on the right for the torture episodes, and criticism from the left on abortion.
I think probably on the whole, like most writers, you're about liberty, free expression, and you generally stand up for the little guy. It seems like the people defending the little guy more often than not [seem] to be progressive, liberal. I come from Canada, so what's called liberal here in Canada would be called conservative.
What political controversies would you have addressed in a 21st season?
The al-Qaeda Seven lawyers, Jihad Jane, we would have done an episode of the iPhone prototype getting stolen, dealing with those issues of technological development, freedom, et cetera.
Have you ever gotten criticism of the show outside of the network that made you think you should have done something differently?
No.
Did you ever try to change the show to coincide with the political mood of the country, such as during the Bush administration when Fred Thompson was brought on board?
No, a lot of those decisions have to do with trying to mix up the dynamic of the show. If all the characters agreed about everything, you wouldn't have much drama.
Obviously the show is more entertainment than education, but how do you strike a balance?
Beats me [laughs]. There is no formula. Our first rule is, don't bore ourselves, and if we don't bore ourselves, we won't bore our audience.
