Wednesday's Law & Order from NBC featured an episode about a member of the "Countryman Project" murdering a trucker who smuggled illegal aliens in to the U.S. Details in "'Minuteman'-like murderers convicted on 'Law & Order'".

However, as you see in the screengrab from their site, they refer to it there as the "Minutemen", a name which I believe is a trademark. Now, NBC certainly has a lot of lawyers, but hopefully the MMP can find some of their own for what might just be a slamdunk case. Their promo, which I've cached just in case, also uses that trademark and not NBC's similar name.

While controversies sell, and some times the media creates a controversy simply to make money, I believe this goes a bit deeper. I believe this episode qualifies as propaganda. The writers and producers of the show are members of a certain class, what we might call the Nanny Employing Class: those who can afford a nanny and a housekeeper and other domestic servants. And, the last thing those people want to do is have their domestics be deported. The next to last thing those people want is for their domestics to think they're racists. And, since they aren't capable of understanding all the complexities inherent in illegal immigration - they're artists not thinkers - they come up with things like this.

The fact that propaganda such as this benefits those major corporations that profit off illegal labor may also play a part. After all, why bite the hands that might have advertising money in them.

And, apparently it was topsy-turvy land all over NBC: "NBC's E Ring: Christian Terroists Take Over Mosque!"

Please send a short, polite email to the president of NBC Entertainment letting him know what you think: Jeff.zucker *at* nbc.com