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b"Producer John Langley had been pitching a no-frills, fly-on-the-wall documentary series following US Police Officers for six years when, in the midst of a writer\\u2019s strike, Fox finally bit. COPS made its debut on 11th March, 1989, becoming one of the longest-running shows in TV history.\\nLangley called it \\u2018video v\\xe9rit\\xe9\\u2019; the New York Times called it \\u2018tabloid TV\\u2019. From the beginning, concerns about its depiction of race relations in America led to criticism that eventually brought about its cancellation - before it was reinstated on a different TV network.\\nIn this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how various Police departments across the States went from being resistant to being featured in COPS to actually nominating themselves for filming; consider why participants were so keen to sign release forms when they were being depicted in such a vulnerable position; and ask if the first series still seems as \\u2018tabloid\\u2019 as it was considered at the time\\u2026\\xa0\\nFurther Reading:\\n\\u2022 \\u2018Episode One: Broward County Florida - Part 2\\u2019 (Fox, 1989): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5k36VTrZcY\\n\\u2022 \\u2018Review/Television; 'Cops' Camera Shows the Real Thing\\u2019 (The New York Times, 1989): https://www.nytimes.com/1989/01/07/arts/review-television-cops-camera-shows-the-real-thing.html\\n\\u2022 \\u2018John Langley: Producer who turned police work into prime reality TV\\u2019 (The Independent, 2021): https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/john-langley-cops-reality-tv-obituary-b1875648.html\\nFor bonus material and to support the show, visit\\xa0Patreon.com/Retrospectors\\nWe'll be back on Monday! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts:\\xa0podfollow.com/Retrospectors\\nThe Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.\\nTheme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Emma Corsham.\\nCopyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.\\xa0\\n Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.\\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices"