Do you find NBC's Outsourced series offensive?

[LongTomH]

The premise of the show is: A lower-level manager of a call center is told that his entire department is being 'laid off' and their jobs will be outsourced to India. His only chance at continued employment is to travel to India and train the Indians who will replace his former co-workers.

Here's Thom Hartman's commentary on 'Outsourced:' http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PlCO-mADfs

I'd like to know, how many of you find even the premise of this show offensive.

My own story? I was laid off from my job as a Senior Programmer Analyst in 2005. I got a chance to go back in 2008 as a contractor - no seniority, and very few benefits (No paid holidays, vacation or sick days.) A lot of the 'old timers I had worked with in the 90's were in the same boat - contractors with few or no benefits. I was told in December 2009 that my contract would not be renewed after the first of the year; some of my old friends were also 'let go' at the same time.

When I was full-time - pre-2005 - I saw quite a few American young people working there along with the old timers. In 2008, most of the young people I saw were foreign (Mostly Indian or Chinese).

So, Hell yeah, I'm offended. I think it's incredibly offensive and insensitive at a time when so many American workers are losing their jobs to outsourcing or foreign workers on 41B visas.

[Dreamer Tatum]

1. Trying hard to find it offensive in the least. Sorry. nt

[thetonka]

2. Ignoring reality

doesn't help anyone.

[Flipper999]

3. I think it's meant to push the viewers' buttons because it hits close to home.

Even if the setting isn't in India, lots of people are forced to train their replacements (or their friends' replacements). The endless race to cut costs are driving the trend.

The writer of the show is just trying to give viewers something that they can relate to, but I don't think it will work very well. It's depressing, and someone who has been outsourced probably isn't going to want to watch anything that reminds them of their pain (if they can even afford TV anymore). I mean, would you like to watch a show where the main character is forced to get a job stuffing live kittens and puppies into a wood chipper? Every single episode.

[Blue Owl]

4. It's more the "making light" of outsourcing than the show itself that annoys me

There's some propaganda involved when the general concept of outsourcing is blindly accepted as reality.

Who loves outsourcing? Cheap Labor Republicans.

Who owns the M$M? Cheap Labor Republicans.

JMO

[Kat45]

17. That's my opinion as well, 'making light' of it is offensive.

My good job got outsourced in 1999-2000 and I haven't really had a good job since. That's also a good point about the general concept of outsourcing being blindly accepted as reality. It should not be accepted, it should not be reality.

[valerief]

18. You hit the nail on the head!!!! nt

[Starbucks Anarchist]

5. People are judging it unfairly based on the premise.

Outsourcing seems to be the setup to the culture-clash comedy it's trying to portray, so saying it's pro-outsourcing doesn't really make sense -- it's like saying "Law & Order" or "CSI" is pro-murder.

Of course, the show could be some half-baked attempt at stereotypical humor, but it hasn't aired yet, so I can't really comment on the quality of the show itself.

[valerief]

19. The crime shows sell violence to America, because "they" want to feed us

violence instead of sex. (Those are the two button-pushers for LCD entertainment.)

The Outsourcing show is "normalizing" outsourcing/offshoring, which means when we Americans lose our jobs to other countries, "it's normal". That's a horrible message.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

36. So... you're offended by crime shows too?

Because that's pretty pathetic.

[KittyWampus]

53. Outsourcing is a literal fact of life.

[Arkana]

56. So...you think "Law & Order" is trying to tell us that rape and murder

are really, really cool?

[Desertrose]

6. Loved the movie.

"Outsourced"

[NightWatcher]

11. and it portrayed the company as asshats who sold crap

the movie was great (and streams free on Netflix)

[truebrit71]

7. The promos looked funny, but then I got to thinking about it and it became less and less amusing..

..What, exactly is supposed to be so funny? The fact that all of those jobs went overseas? Or maybe that because the only way the white dude keeps his job is to go to India? Or maybe it's funny to laugh at the poor bastards being paid $1/day to take those US jobs in the first place, or maybe it's just really fucking hysterical to listen to people with accents use Americanised names...

Me? I'm having a hard time seeing that as being funny, but then again I just sent a script to hollywood for a new series called "Foreclosed" which stars a cast of very rich bankers that each week get to fuck over a poor family that can no longer afford their home and the side-achingly funny hilarity that ensues as the poor family struggles to survive out on the streets...

[Dreamer Tatum]

27. Lighten up, Francis

It's a show about culture clashes. Culture clashes make good comedy. Unless, of course, you're a sourpuss to begin with.

[Romulox]

32. You can't command people to laugh. It looks lame to me, too.

Then again, I think NBC's Office and Parks... are both terrible, so... :shrug:

[Dreamer Tatum]

37. And you can't command people to be outraged at every turn...doesn't stop people from trying nt

[Romulox]

43. Um, what? You're outraged at others' outrage?

Do you see how the "they're whining/outraged!" thing turns in on itself basically by move two? :hi:

[Binka]

39. Make This A Thread

Spot on!:hi: I love your posts BTW, you are one of my DU favs.

[uponit7771]

8. It's a least insensitive to the times....

[maxsolomon]

9. offensive, but won't watch

it's on NBC - and i can't stand anything on network TV.

[Darth_Ole]

20. Satire depends on context

And in a time when outsourcing is such a big issue, there's really no more biting time to do a show on outsourcing.

The show is not promoting outsourcing at all, but rather portrays characters caught in an absurd situation brought on by globalization. I suppose one could say M*A*S*H was insensitive because it was a comedy set in the Korean War, but its mission was to satirize the absurdity of war, not poke fun at the doctors who were caught in the mess. The same goes for this show.

I recently spent over 11 hours on the phone over the course of a week trying to get Tracfone's tech support to simply activate a phone. Putting up with Tracfone's incompetence was only slightly more frustrating than putting up with the undecipherable accents, dropped calls, etc. Millions of Americans have gone through similar nonsense, and Outsourced tries to capture this common experience.

Corporate globalization is absurd, and Outsourced seeks to highlight this fact, not mock you for losing your job.

Stop taking offense. Like a swamp, Outsourced will only stink when you stir shit up.

[maxsolomon]

21. i should clarify

i'm offended to the degree that nearly everything that occurs in america offends me: the pursuit of money at the expense of all that is beyond price - namely health, art and beauty. so it's a mild disgust, not a high dudgeon. i was born here, so i'm used to it. i avoid things that debase me as much as possible because i only get to live one time.

i won't watch it, but i can't remember the last thing i watched on NBC.

[brendan120678]

10. Ahh...here I was thinking that it was being called "offensive"....

for a completely different reason. I figured people were calling it offensive because it looks like it may promote some Indian stereotypes, not because it is "pro-outsourcing."

Me, I couldn't care one way or the other.

[uncommon]

12. Art (or at least entertainment) imitates life.

Sometimes one must make light of something in order to make life bearable.

[damntexdem]

13. Other: I like otters.

They're so cute.

[Romulox]

14. Remember the movie "Gung Ho"? Laugh riot! nt

[Bill McBlueState]

15. offensiveness aside,

All of the "won't watch" options are beating the tar out of the "will watch" options. Sucks to be NBC.

[political_Dem]

16. It's not only offensive, but racist too.

I think the show doesn't vent its anger at corporations, per se. It is using this premise to legitimize the animus people have toward people of color, here or abroad. It's not a surprise that this humor would be right up the alley of the old boys club who runs the Entertainment industry.

That's why Spike Lee's "Bamboozled" is right on the mark in a lot of ways when attacking how the network showrunners make inane choices like this for television fare bordering on the lines of "Amos and Andy".

[Dreamer Tatum]

22. Really? How did you see it already?

(Here it comes...'I have a friend in the business who does blahblahblah and he says that....')

[political_Dem]

26. Since you have all the answers, why would I need to reply?

Ciao.

[Initech]

23. I'm heavily opposed to outsourcing to begin with.

[SoCalDem]

24. I find MOST network TV offensive

:rofl:

[LongTomH]

29. Agreed! There's very little quality in Network TV anymore.

The only good stuff is on BBC America.

[SoCalDem]

31. & HBO/Showtime

I am loving the new Boardwalk series so far..

I thought I would like Rubicon, but it stunk..

[Iggo]

25. Haven't seen it.

'Member all the shit we gave those people for getting all offended over that movie (was it The Da Vinci Code?) without even having seen it first?

Same thing here.


(I spel gud)

[jdp349]

28. I read the pilot script a few months back

There was nothing I found offensive.

[LongTomH]

30. Thanks for the replies!

I should have added that it is offensive for the racial stereotypes.

[JonLP24]

33. I'd have to see it first

I do have concerns about making light of outsourcing but it is no big deal. Comedies cover all sorts of serious topics and try to make them funny. I'm more concerned about racial stereotypes though.

[lightningandsnow]

34. I love how a show about outsourcing is way more offensive than racial stereotyping.

Because "foreign" folks aren't real people, you know.

:sarcasm:

And, yeah, I saw the trailer.

I don't think outsourcing is beyond satire. I think some of the stereotypes on the show are problematic, but I'm hardly outraged at a show about outsourcing.

Actually, I find it unfortunate that South Asian actors can only get jobs playing terrorists or call-centre workers.

[Romulox]

44. How are we supposed to know what racial stereotypes exist in a show we haven't seen?

We know that the premise revolves around outsourcing. Your post is the first I'm hearing that the show also involves lots of "racial stereotyping" (though "Indian" is probably an ethnicity, rather than a race--no matter.) So I'll queue up to be outraged about whatever racial (sic) stereotyping exists in the series, as well, as more information becomes available.


Other than the premise, the only thing I really know about this show's "humor" is a running joke on the name of the character "Manmeat" (sp?). I don't know if that's racist, but it's undeniably idiotic. :shrug:

[The2ndWheel]

35. But the people working on the show have jobs at least, right?

I don't have the energy to be offended by a tv show. In fact, writing that I don't have the energy for it took m.......................

[Vickers]

46. For now.

:P

[L0oniX]

38. TV for stupid people.

[Common Sense Party]

49. TV IS for stupid people.

By and large.

[DainBramaged]

40. You can never go wrong with kitteh........

India, they can't take care of their own but they will gladly steal our jobs and industries and force our wages and living standard down



http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39320649/ns/world_news-south_and_central_asia/



'Exploit them to to the hilt'
Many of the estimated 100,000 workers on Games' site were paid as little as 110 Rupees ($2.40) per day, close to half of the mandated minimum wage of 203 Rupees, said Kamal Jaswal, director and chief executive of Common Cause.

"This illustrates the dire lot of the construction worker," Jaswal told msnbc.com. "Particularly migrant workers — petty contractors exploit them to the hilt."

[county worker]

41. We are learning to become more desensitized to each other's pain.

I think a good case in point is the debate between the "professional leftists" and those who think the leftists are a fringe group to be ignored.

Professional leftists can understand the pain people have and can have empathy because they are either feeling the same pain or have lived their lives caring about others.

The idea that we should remain in the center comes from those who don't feel pain right now or who have become desensitized to the pain of other Americans and can't feel empathy for them. It is a defensive mechanism because they cannot comprehend the seriousness of the crisis so many people are in. They live in denial and are willing to accept the status quo as the new normal.

This show supports the desensitizing by not focusing on the pain and suffering of those outsourced but rather portrays the new normal without any kind of ethical or moral judgment being made.

[gulliver]

42. Offensive propaganda disguised as brain dead humor

It's a wonderful stereotype of Indians mixed with bundles of laughs about lost American jobs to a country that practices apartheid. LOL!

[walldude]

45. More like pointless than offensive...

Really, I don't get it. Is this a reality show? Is it supposed to be a sitcom? WTF? This is why I don't watch TV. If I'm offended it's because some jackass thought I was so fucking stupid that I would find this entertaining.

[geardaddy]

47. I haven't watched it. Just the prospect of it seemed offensive to me. n/t

[Common Sense Party]

48. First of all, comedy doesn't exist without tragedy.

There has to be some element of truth for something to be funny.

And often, the things we laugh at the most are things that cause us pain. One of the ways people cope with unpleasantness is by trying to find the humor amid the pain.

That said, I haven't seen the TV show. If it's like most network sitcoms, they'll find a way to make it painfully unfunny.

The movie was pretty funny, and pleasant. It dealt with the ugly side of globalization, and poked fun at the corporations who engage in outsourcing, while reminding the viewer that we're all humans, and the world is a better place when we try to understand one another.

I'd encourage everyone to see the movie on Netflix. And not get too exercised about a sitcom that will probably be canceled in a few months.

[TexasObserver]

50. It will probably not be offensive for its message.

The message of the film upon which the TV show is based was:

Big global corporations treat humans like indentured servants. They fire Americans and replace them with Indians. An American manager is given a chance to go to India to train the people who will replace his employees in America. He does so, and it is an opportunity to explore the biases of American and Indians. It is an opportunity for multi culturalism to be taught and to prevail.

(Film spoiler alert)

As the movie comes to an end, we find out that the global corp is closing the Indian call center for a Chinese call center, because they can get the same number of workers for half the costs. The message is hammered home that this is the way global corps treat humans.

Don't be so fast to find offense. This storyline highlights the damage outsourcing does to American workers. The show may be bad, it may not be funny, or it may not be true to the spirit of the film. If so, that's reason to find offense.

I very much support protections for US workers, and would like to see more, not less. If anything, this show might encourage voters to think about the jobs their friends and neighbors are losing to the problem of outsourcing.

[baldguy]

51. Outsourcing is a crime - or it should be.

Where's the lighthearted situation comedy about the transatlantic slave trade?

[LanternWaste]

52. Outsourced seems like rather small potatoes.

As long as South Park et.al. have their legions of vociferous defenders, ready to righteously justify any offense the show may make at any minority, philosophy or disability, Outsourced seems like rather small potatoes.


I'm told time and again that all humor offends someone somewhere. I guess it finally becomes a big deal when it's our own sacred cows that get gored, then do we studiously examine the demerits of offense in humor, call it "in bad taste", and begin to act like my parents did in reaction to Akroyd's depiction of Nixon in SNL.

[KittyWampus]

54. finding a show you haven't even SEEN yet offensive is fucked up republican bullshit.

[Arkana]

55. Considering I'm in IT, yeah, it pisses me off.

[dkf]

57. Irony is legal immigrants are more at risk of having to leave than illegal immigrants.

Funny that.

[mdmc]

58. ..

[HEyHEY]

59. Then you offend too easily. Are you sure you aren't LOOKING for something to be offended by?

Like, really. Sitcoms have often commented on social changes and challenges. Look at All In the Family, a MUCH more offensive show by nature.

[avaistheone1]

60. It's tacky, dumb-downed tv at its worst.

[tomg]

61. I've thought of a great spin off:

It follows the wild and wacky adventures of one the former co-workers of the call center manager who goes off to India as the former co-worker searches for work, his/her benefits run out, he/she loses everything and winds up dumpster diving. Each week h/she has hilarious adventures trying to negotiate an increasingly decaying, underfunded and stressed out social service system.

[Confusious]

62. not so much offensive as pissed

haha! look at the funny hijicks that happen after you loose your job!

[orleans]

63. i watched it and thought it was poorly written, "jokes" weren't funny

and they were very predictable -- and the premise was depressing.

what a flop.