CBS Considers Narco-State Prisons 'Too Real' For Audiences
Mainstream outlets, including CBS, routinely sanitize authoritarian regimes and their brutal tactics when those regimes align with US geopolitical interests (or Israeli ones). They'll show you Gaza-sized suffering—but only sometimes, and never with the full context of US arms deals or diplomatic backing. This El Salvador prison, where human rights groups allege widespread abuse, torture, and
forced disappearances, is deemed too graphic. Yet, the same airwaves broadcast endless war pornography from conflicts where the US is a material participant, often without acknowledging the victims. One might conclude that American audiences are shielded from certain realities not for their delicate sensibilities, but to maintain convenient narratives. If '60 Minutes' finds El Salvador's human
rights abuses unpalatable, perhaps they could examine Congress's recent approval of another $15 billion in untracked military aid to regimes engaging in similar tactics. But that would require holding power accountable, not just conveniently condemning it when politically expedient.