[vkou]

There was also a prominent spy show[1] produced in the US that seemed to be intended as propaganda for normalizing torture. That morally bankrupt practice was portrayed as effective, expedient, cathartic, and the only solution to all the bad men that will come get us, because they hate our freedom.

If you're looking for ethical integrity, you should probably stop turning to spy shows for it. They are loud, dumb, and tend to be sickeningly nationalistic.

[1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/24_(TV_series)

[hindsightbias]

Not even spy shows. It’s weird to see Blue Bloods (an NYPD show) celebrating their 10th anniversary season. I stopped watching after the first episode where a cop tortures a suspect and his father (the police commissioner) lectures his daughter (a district attorney) about the differences between torture and enhanced interrogation.

And the commissioners whole schtick is principled, conservative law-and-order...