Federal Bureau of Investigation portrayal in media

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The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has been a staple of American popular culture since its christening in 1935. That year also marked the beginning of the popular "G-Man" phenomenon that helped establish the Bureau's image, beginning with the aptly titled James Cagney movie, G Men. Although the detective novel and other police-related entertainment had long enthralled audiences, the FBI itself can take some of the credit for its media prominence. J. Edgar Hoover, the Bureau's "patriarch", took an active interest to ensure that it was not only well represented in the media, but also that the FBI was depicted in a heroic, positive light and that the message, "crime doesn't pay", was blatantly conveyed to audiences. The context, naturally, has changed profoundly since the 1930s "war on crime", and especially so since Hoover's death in 1972.[1]

The FBI's role

Any author, motion picture producer, or television script writer may consult with the FBI Office of Public Affairs about closed cases or their operations, services, or history. However, there is no requirement for the FBI to cooperate, and it does not edit or approve/disapprove fictional works. The Office of Public Affairs may, on a project-by-project basis, provide assistance to help ensure accuracy.[2] Some filmmakers offer reasonably accurate presentations of the FBI's responsibilities, investigations, and procedures in their story lines, while others present their own interpretations or introduce fictional events, persons, or places for dramatic effect.

There have been many fiction and non-fiction portrayals of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, from which the following is only a small sample.

Books

Films

1935 newspaper ad for G Men proclaims: "Screaming headlines are a feeble whisper compared to the sensational revelations in this shot-by-shot dramatization of gangland's Waterloo."

Radio

  • One early portrayal of the G-Men image was a 1935 radio program produced in collaboration with J. Edgar Hoover titled G-Men. Hoover wished to depict the FBI's successes as the product of teamwork rather than the heroics of individual agents. His concept, however, did not translate well into mass entertainment. The show was soon re-conceptualized and renamed
    big little book, a DC Comics comic book
    , and a television series in the 1950s.

Two other popular radio shows based on the activities of the Bureau were:

Tabletop gaming

Television

Video games

  • In the video game Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth the protagonist goes on to assist former FBI director J. Edgar Hoover as well as other members of the FBI in destroying the Cult of Cthulhu in a major plot point of the game.
  • In the game Call of Duty: Black Ops II, the FBI is a playable faction in multiplayer, opposing the Mercs on certain maps. All members wear masks and tactical gear and have access to the same arsenal as other military factions in the game. They are also mentioned in the single-player campaign.
  • In the game Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, the FBI is one of the counter-terrorist factions.
  • In the video game Deadly Premonition, the main protagonist is an eccentric FBI profiler named Francis York Morgan.
  • The game Destroy All Humans! features parodies of 1950s era FBI members, known as Majestics, acting in a similar role to the Grand Theft Auto, appearing if the player causes too much mayhem. They wield the same technology as the alien protagonist, Crypto.
  • The character
    G-Man from the Half-Life
    series is so named for his resemblance to a stereotypical member of the FBI (suit, tie and brief case) as well as his strange demeanor and conspiratorial nature.
  • In the Grand Theft Auto video game franchise, the FBI is portrayed in-game and drive black SUVs or town cars, wearing black ties, white shirts, and blue jackets with the letters "FBI" on the back. In gameplay, they appear during certain missions and when the player has reached a five-star wanted level, appearing before the Military hunt the player. From Grand Theft Auto IV onward, they are instead called Federal Investigation Bureau (FIB), nodding towards the corruption of the in-game agency.
  • In the video game
    FBI
    profiler who uses ARI (Added Reality Interface).
  • In the video game Hitman: Blood Money, some of the NPC's are FBI agents, wearing a black suit and tie, sunglasses, and a Bluetooth headset.
  • The video game Red Dead Redemption, set in 1911, features the BOI, the early FBI. In game, Bureau agents commit the "justified" murders of outlaws in order to "tame" the Wild West.
  • In the Survival RPG
    Parasite Eve 2
    Aya Brea is an FBI agent working for MIST, a unit specialized in combating genetically mutated creatures. Throughout the game she uncovers a genetic conspiracy involving mithocondrial DNA. On the first installment, she was a NYPD cop.
  • In the series of Saints Row, after getting 5 out of 5 "stars", the FBI come with a black SUV with sirens and lights. When they come out of the SUV, they are men with all-black suits with assault rifles and combat pistols.
  • In the video game Godfather the protagonist bribes FBI agents to turn the heat on other mafia families.

See also

References

  1. .
  2. ^ "About Us: FAQS: Working at the FBI". FBI.gov.
  3. .
  4. ^ Hoover, J. Edgar (29 July 1935). "Modern Problems of Law Enforcement". Vital Speeches of the Day. 1 (22). City News Publishing: 682–686.
  5. .
  6. ^ Evans, Robert (2006). The Kid Stays in the Picture. Phoenix Books. p. 133.
  7. ^ "Collection: Martha Brooks papers | Archival Collections". archives.lib.umd.edu. Retrieved 2020-12-15.
  8. ^ "FBI's muckraking files reveal dirt on celebrities from Sinatra to Liberace". Recorder.ca.
  9. ^ Nugent, Phil, "Swimming with Sharkey", 'High Hat', 2007 http://thehighhat.com/Static/002/wiseguy.html

External links