NBC gives new meaning to the phrase “green screen” next week, spreading a pro-environmental message across five of its prime-time entertainment programs – AP News.

When Arthur Miller wrote “The Crucible” it was rightly seen as a brilliant allegory to the House Un-American Activities Committee. It was a brilliant piece of drama about the Salem Witch Trials of the late 17th Century with obvious corollaries to the political climate of post-World War II America. And no matter where you fall on the political spectrum you must recognize the play as a classic in the canon of American drama.

My admiration for much of Miller’s work gives me enough confidence to say that he would view the current efforts to ham-handedly inject political statements into television sitcoms as absolute crap. It takes a deft hand to send a message without it seeming like you are sending a message… and the writers of “The Office” and “30 Rock,” as glib as they may be, are no “Arthur Millers”.

I love “The Office.” I’m one of those apostates who actually like the U.S. version better than the original (must be my knee-jerk patriotism at work). But I saw my very first example of lousy (and I mean REALLY lousy) writing this season when they tried to force the issue of “Volunteer-ism” into the storyline.


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And remember what genius came up with the idea for this storyline? According to the memo revealed by Big Hollywood it was inspired by a call to action by the “most powerful writer since Julius Caesar.” And now, to paraphrase the words of a truly great leader…”well, here they go again.”

The left-wing flavor of the month is Green Week, on GE owned NBC. We have already reported that our children have to suffer through “Sustainable Living” storylines on “Sesame Street” and now NBC is preaching to the parents how being green is easy. Unfortunately, it’s probably not going to be too entertaining.

Maybe the AP description doesn’t do it justice, but this doesn’t sound very funny to me:

This year on “30 Rock,” corporate boss Jack Donaghy tells the late-night show’s staff it has to cut its carbon footprint by 5 percent, and puts Kenneth the Page in charge of getting it done.

In the comedy “Community,” the college is renamed “Environdale.” College students think they’re hiring the band Green Day for a gig, and instead gets the Celtic combo Greene Daeye. Dwight in “The Office” takes the role of “Recyclops” in that comedy. “Heroes” features cast members filling a truck with recyclables and talking about the importance of giving back to the earth.

If the end-product is anything like the embarrassing “Volunteer-ism” thread from “The Office” we might actually see a four-way Shark Jump that Evil Knievel would admire.

I know a lot of writers. And they all have a rebellious streak. They love marching to the beat of a different drummer. In fact, one of the main themes of “30 Rock” is the constant battles between the Bohemian writers and the corporate demands from the network. So, why in hell do they go for this stuff? It’s probably because they believe it.

That’s why we rarely see a storyline on a crime drama where a gun owner prevents a crime and saves a life. Or why we rarely see a storyline about a teen in trouble choosing to give her child up for adoption rather than be an un-wed mother or extinguish the nascent life she is carrying (although I have high hopes for “Glee” and the storyline they are pursuing).

And over on HBO, if you really think about the notorious scene where Larry David is relieving himself with offensive results. Objectively speaking, wouldn’t it have been MUCH funnier if his assistant had been black and the urine splashed on a picture of President Obama and the assistant thought it was a divine miracle and began devoting her life to worshiping Barack? It would have been funnier and it would have been a more contemporary comment on American Culture rather than a tired joke about Latino culture. But, Larry David would never have thought in those terms because it’s not what he believes.

The biggest crime in all of this is that these stories will suffer due to this obnoxious attempt at preaching. And the audiences’ enjoyment will suffer as well. In the same way the audience is jarred out of their enjoyment of the musical “Wicked.” The producers spent millions of dollars in costuming and special effects to transport the audience to the magical Land of Oz. When the house falls on the Wicked Witch of the East in Act 2, the character of Glinda refers to it as “Regime Change.” It is supposed to be a laugh line. But given the juxtaposition of Glinda in the story and her role as propagandist for the malevolent Wizard’s government, the majority of ticket holders who supported President Bush and the war in Iraq were sure to feel like they were being mocked from the stage.

If you’re Arthur Miller and you can tell me a story with great characters and great dialogue, I barely care that you’re criticizing the industrial war complex (“All My Sons“) or commenting on the post-war “American Dream” as a myth (“Death of a Salesman“). Good writing is good writing and great entertainment is great entertainment. Green Week on NBC, is doomed to be neither, so they should just stick with what they do best and leave the political propaganda to Valerie Jarrett.