LAPD’s ‘Orwellian’ anti-terror ads creeping out viewers

By Daniel Tencer
Sunday, October 25th, 2009 -- 2:15 pm
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orwell1984movie LAPDs Orwellian anti terror ads creeping out viewersAn ad released by the Los Angeles Police Department urging the public to participate in an anti-terror snooping program is being described by numerous observers and news sources by a single word: Creepy.

The one-and-a-half minute spot, which can be viewed below, features a multicultural line-up of speakers explaining why they participate in iWatch, a "neighborhood watch for the whole city," as the ad describes it.

"If you see, hear, or smell something suspicious, report it. Reporting is easy. Use the web or the phone," the speakers state. "A single report can lead to actions that can stop a terrorist attack. Think about that. Think about the power of that. Think about the power of iWatch."

And indeed plenty of people are now thinking about the power of iWatch, and many observers are not impressed. Allison Kilkenny, on her TrueSlant blog, says it won't be long before iWatch will be exploited by people for their own purposes.

These kinds of anonymous hotlines are ripe for abuse, and there exist endless possibilities of innocent citizens being reported by their neighbors for the crime of “Living While Being Arab.”

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After the 9/11 attacks, we were told the solution to terrorism was to have citizens spy on each other, and not to, say, elect a competent government. That’s when TIPS (Terrorist Information and Prevention System) was born, an initiative to recruit one million volunteers in 10 cities across the country that encouraged them to report suspicious activity that might be terrorism-related. An investigative political journalist, Ritt Goldstein, observed in Australia’s Sydney Morning Herald that TIPS would provide America with a higher percentage of “citizen spies” than the former East Germany had under the notorious Stasi secret police.

The LAPD is "creeping out America" with the ad, states KNBC in Los Angeles. The station cites outgoing LAPD Chief William Bratton, who said that "a single terrorism incident would do more harm to the city's image and economy than 50 gang murders."

"Absolutely true -- but do we really have to be so creepy with the promotional videos?" asked the station in its report. "This is LA. There are probably one or two writers, actors and directors that would be willing to cut out some of that creepiness."

Tina Dupuy at the media-affairs blog MediaBistro writes that the ad "is universally thought to be creepy and not unlike we've imagined PSA's on Orwell's telescreens to be like."

But our reaction is why did this take so long? Hello! September 11th 2001 was like eight years ago. It's taken the LAPD this long to ask Angelenos to be on the look out for anything suspicious in regards to terrorism?! What, did they get stuck in traffic for the better part of a decade?

This video is from LAPD, broadcast Oct. 3, 2009.



Download video via RawReplay.com

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Story comments are below...
  • It's what needed to convert us into a full police state. You need the tattle tail squads and police with masks to "protect you", lol
  • BeckettDude
    "I want our country to remain a democracy. That's why iWatch the LAPD."
  • schmice
    I want to report a terrorist named Dick Cheney. I want to report his daughter, too. I also want to report Ann Coulter, Glen Beck and Michael "Savage" Weiner. That's just for starters.
  • tlove69696969
    why you got a problem with free speech?
  • Northwestwoods
    I have a problem with crimes against humanity, treason and war crimes.
  • CaptBebops
    When I grew up in the 1950's they used to show us movies like this and say "this is what happened in Nazi Germany and what is happening in Soviet Russia." I guess they hope that none of us remember that or that our fathers or grandfathers fought against totalitarian governments that sponsored propaganda like this. What will happen of course is someone who doesn't like somebody will report them as a terrorist. This got some people into Gitmo. Don't stand to it!
  • overdoneputaforkinit
    Now I know how I'm gonna get back at the jerk who keeps me up at night pacing the floor in the apartment upstairs! Officer, "They stay up all night. I hear them talking and arguing. The are often moving heavy objects like sacks and rolling barrels across the floor. I think I heard one say "fertilizer."
  • boogabooga
    iwatched the single worst day in American history as 3,000 lives were snuffed out by our own government on 9/11 -- THAT'S WHY iWATCH!

    iWATCH the government,

    iWATCH the military and especially

    iWATCH the local police -- in this case LAPD.
  • barneyfifemotherfucker
    Anyone who fears terrorism in America is a fucking coward and should be brutalized randomly. More people have died from peanut related allergies in the past thirty years than by acts of terrorism. Fuck LAPD and fuck anyone who takes this advertisement seriously.
  • JonWa
    I iWatch too and I want to report the mass murder of 3,000 American citizens by current and former terrorist of the U.S. Government, namely George Bush, Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, Condi Rice, Richard Perle, Paul Wofowitz and other persons abetting this cabal. The biggest threat to our security are these domestic terrorists and not some primitive ragtag militia groups hiding out in caves.
  • buckqjohnson
    Yea, let the police decide if it isn't a terrorists. And if it isn't thats just great, now they will arrest the big black man that looks threatening because during the search they found pot on him. What this does is to let the people make their own jail cells and enslave themselves. You see the police would look suspicious if they would just have went up to this big black man not doing anything and wanted to search him. By saying that Iwatch called and thought you where acting suspicious, they would have "reason" to detain and question and harass. And just watch, it will be used against anybody that some person has a grudge or jealous of. When you give people anonymous power to mess up someones day, then they will use it just for that. And I think the govt. and the people in power know that.
  • Andrea Stone
    Hmmm, just imagine if Bush had paid attenton to his Aug.6 PDB we might not be seeing this scary and ridiculous commercial. I recall as a child hearing the stries of how in the Soviet Union neighbors were encouraged to turn other neighbors into the KGB for suspicious activity, I bet if you dig down deep enough into this advert you'll find some right wingers jizzing all over themselves with glee that people might actually start ratting on each other.
  • miggy
    I new this was happening and it’s no surprise. If your going to make a police state, how do you set it up. You fool the people into wanting it and the police into thinking that it’s for crime and terrorism prevention. They aren’t going to hire tens of thousands of people just to be the “new gestapo” if it happens, they will use the police. As marty made comment to, they will falsify intelligence data going out to the police and law enforcement. The law enforcement won’t be able to tell if the new data from the fusion centers are real or made up, they will take it as real because hey it’s coming from the govt.. So if you as the secret cabal want to have investigated or harrassed or even arrested lets say Larisa Alexandrovna or the other people that produce this website, you put out false data with a little truth to show that they are terrorists sympathizers or child abusers with “evidence” etc. etc.. This way the cops get the info and run with it, in essence they made the cops into the muscle or foot soldiers for the cause. You see how cops react when an anonymous call is placed about something that may or may not be real, what or how do you think they will react when they see Dept. of Homeland security and/or NSA bold typed on a document saying that these people are _______. They will act like god himself came down and said it was true.
  • antonalfrednewcombe
    IWATCH?

    RODNEY KING.
  • DeesNutz
    achtung, baby! Get ready for the 4th Reich!
  • 5by5
    What's with the fisheye lens and the blurred focus around the edges? It makes these people look even creepier than what they're saying.

    Their eyes end up looking all buggy, and that, combined with their apparent eagerness and joy at the Stazi-like behavior they're encouraging everyone to engage in, makes them seem less like "concerned citizens" and more like stalkers or peeping Toms.

    The whole idea of this is icky enough, this just makes it full-on skin crawl worthy.

    Whoever the ad agency is that shot this crap? Oughta get out of business like yesterday. Actually, come to think of it, I'd like to know which agency they hired to do this work, and what their political connections are. "Creative" ideas like that don't happen in a vacuum. I suspect the agency responsible is all too eager to help the authoritarianism to proceed, because they themselves give heavily to authoritarian candidates.

    I'd just like to know who to avoid working with.
  • farang
    You can "smell" terrorism?

    What's it smell like..Pigs? or Pot?
  • singlenluvinit
    IDONTWatch...but my ex husband did, until he got caught by my neighbor with his willy in his hand.
  • danuren
    it has always been in our future. orwell damned us all.
  • jimthebeam
    In the near future I see a trade mark infringement suit brought by Apple. Be that as it may, what was your reaction to the "Turn in drunk drivers" signs you see around (at least in California). As I'm driving I see this sign and think "How do I know who is drunk?"
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