Color of Change has seen enough of Fox’s long-running reality show COPS.
The group, co-founded by 9/11 truther Van Jones, is urging the network and sponsors to abandon the series. It claims one of the original reality shows on television profits off of, and dehumanizes, blacks.
“Research shows that with such a narrow range of Black characters and personalities in primetime, the negative perceptions and distorted images presented by shows like COPS, create an atmosphere of suspicion and desensitizes and conditions audiences to view police misconduct and harsher punishments as acceptable,” said Executive Director of ColorOfChange, Rashad Robsinon in a statement. “Given the implicit biases and negative outcomes that are shaped by crime shows like COPS that paint a distorted portrait of Black people and the criminal justice system, FOX and the advertisers associated with COPS should think long and hard about whether they want to continue to associate their brands with this type of dehumanizing content despite pressure from the Black community.
The group put up on online petition to help spur action but doesn’t share how many people have signed up so far.
COPS lets police officers bring cameras along with them as they battle criminals across the United States.
Color of Change has experience trying to get content it disagrees with off the air. The group rallied advertisers to abandon Fox News’ Glenn Beck in 2009, an effort some claim led to Beck leaving the network.