John Langley: The Man Behind "Cops"

by Erika Waddell

John Langley is the creator and executive producer of "Cops." Since he developed the show in 1988, "Cops" has filmed across the U.S. and the world, taping episodes in Hong Kong, London, Russia, and South America.

Last week, "Cops" aired its 600th episode. To mark this accomplishment, we spoke with Mr. Langley to hear his thoughts on why it has succeeded.

Q: Why are people so fascinated with this show?

A: Maybe because it's still unpredictable and immediate and deals with raw reality.

Q: I understand that you can only show the faces of people who have signed a release form. What percentage of people sign it?A: I'd say 90%.

Q: And is that up or down since the show started?

A: It's more. It may even be 95% now. And I think it's because "Cops" has become part of pop culture, almost everybody knows the show even if they haven't watched it. They've heard of it or they know what it deals with, or they know the theme song. Over the years it's become almost de rigueur to be on "Cops" if you happen to get caught.

Q: That's why I asked that question. I feel like people would want to do it now, it's sort of cool.

A: Yeah, they're very receptive. I mean, we have people say "Get that damn news camera out of my face," and my crew will say, "We're not with the news, we're with 'Cops'," and they'll go "Cool!"

Q: How do you go about getting people to sign the release? If someone is hesitant, how do you try to talk him or her into it?

A: Our guys say, "Look, why shouldn't you be on? This really happened, nobody's saying it didn't happen, this shows what happened. If you claim that the cops have mistreated you or aren't being fair to you or whatever the case may be, you have the proof of it. It's right on tape. Why wouldn't you want it to be shown?" I mean, they just use psychology along these lines, or try to convince them that there's nothing to lose.

Q: And when does this happen? Does it happen at the scene, or do you wait a while?

A: It usually happens at the scene because they're going from call to call. It's very difficult to track people down afterwards.

Q: What if someone's intoxicated?

A: [With] intoxicated people, we go back to get releases. So that it's ironclad.

Q: Are people ever paid to sign the release?

A: No, we don't pay people for a release, and the reason is we're a reality show, we're a documentary. It's about what's real. These aren't actors. We're not going to pay them to be who they are.

Q: Do people ever try to get out of the releases?

A: Occasionally. But signing a release is a contract, and contract law is pretty specific. Once you sign it, that's it, baby. You're an adult. You know what you're signing. It's just like signing a purchase for a car.

Q: At the end of the show, a disclaimer says that all suspects are innocent until proven guilty. What percentage of people are actually convicted?

A: I have no idea, because we don't follow up on every call. It's more of a slice-of-life show. It shows you what's happening when it's happening. It's not a traditional documentary in that it follows the case all the way through the courts... It doesn't go into the epilogues.

Q: How and why do you choose locations?

A: Well, I try to make "Cops" a road show. I like to travel it across the country because I think it keeps it fresh and it also gives a portrait of law enforcement all over America. So rather than just see one eye or an eye and an eyebrow, I like to show the ears, the nose, the chin, the entire portrait.

Q: So how do you choose those locations? Do you go back to cities that have given you good stuff before?

A: Sometimes, yes. Sometimes we repeat cities, but never one year after another. I usually wait and give them a break for a while. We're filming our 18th season now. The luxury of longevity is that we can keep going back to places where we've been before and still travel the show and still incorporate new locations.

Q: How long do you tape in each location?

A: Usually about eight weeks.

Q: How much footage do you generally have before something worthy of being on television happens?

A: I may have eight to ten crews out at any given time, and I try to get a show a week. I don't always succeed. Sometimes I'll get half a show and the next week I'll get a show and a half. But it kind of averages out to that, so we're on the road for 30 to 40 weeks a year.

Q: Do you take all the officers in an area, or do you choose certain officers?

A: It's like a casting call in some respects. We like to be with the most proactive cops because that's where the most stuff happens. We like to be in the busier areas. Otherwise you can never do a show like this because you'll sit around. There's a lot of paperwork involved in this work and a lot of downtime, and that doesn't make for good television. So we try to find the most proactive, telegenic cops and the most active areas just as a matter of practicality.

Q: Are officers willing to do this?

A: Pretty much, yeah. We have a really good reception, obviously, because it's a show about police officers, so it's kind of their show in that sense. They're the protagonists.

Q: Do your crews ever help apprehend criminals?

A: No, that's not our job. We're there to capture what's going on, not to create what's going on. The minute we become the story, there is no story. So that's my mandate to all of our crews: "If you're in the middle of a riot and they start focusing on you, turn off the cameras. Get out of there." We're under the supervision and direction of law enforcement when we're filming with them. They're the cops, not us.

Q: I've always wondered that, because when you watch a chase and the cameraman almost has him, you're kind of rooting for him to do it.

A: What's happening is the cameraman is trying to get the shot, he's not trying get the suspect. Sometimes the cameraman may be in better shape than the cop and will outrun the cop, but he has to fall back and let the cop catch up.

Q: Is "Cops" footage ever used as evidence in a trial?

A: Yes.

Q: How often does that happen?

A: Not as often as you would think, but it does occasionally happen.

Q: So do you provide attorneys with footage that was not broadcast?

A: No, never. In fact, we just recycle footage that isn't broadcast, because I don't have the wherewithal to keep thousands upon thousands of tapes that aren't being used.

Q: Has a police officer ever been fired or sued because of his behavior on the show?

A: No.

Q: Has "Cops" ever caught a celebrity doing something illegal?

A: Oh yeah. Many years ago an Academy Award-winning composer was on one of our shows. Jack Nitzsche. I think he was waving a gun around and might've been drunk. It was in Hollywood.

Q: Does the show ever revisit arrestees from past episodes?

A: No, but we've had arrestees from prior episodes show up in a different city and appear again. Not intentionally, it just shows recidivism is a reality.

Q: What is your favorite segment ever?

A: You know, I'm sometimes asked this and I genuinely and honestly do not have a favorite segment, because there have been so many, and they're like flavors of ice cream. One day you might like Neapolitan, another day you might like chocolate, vanilla or rocky road...

Q: Do you have a favorite genre, like Bad Girls or Shots Fired, or Best Chases?

A: Well, to be honest with you, those are all promotional tools to get people to watch the show. To me, the show is best when it's balanced, when it maybe has an action piece, and then a lyrical piece, and then a think piece. Because it's a three-segment structure. If you do all chases, my theory is you'll get tired of the chases after a while. So you don't want to do just chase, chase, chase. It's better to have a chase and then something that's a little slower, more humorous, more lyrical, more whatever, and then it's nice to shift gears again and have something that provokes thought about our laws or the nature of law enforcement or the nature of human behavior or crime or whatever the case may be. It's just more interesting to me that way.

Q: Do you have a favorite cop?

A: No. I've seen a lot of really great cops over the years, really proactive and courageous, just good guys. I mean, not all cops are good guys, but the good news is that most are. I came to appreciate police officers over the years, because I wasn't a big fan when I was a kid. I'm a kid of the 60s, so I never thought I would do a show called "Cops." It just turns out that I like the documentary form and I like so-called reality television. To me there's nothing more interesting then what's real, what's true.

Q: You're pretty much the founder of reality TV.

A: Oh, I don't know if I can be blamed for that, but I was probably one of the early guys in that genre.

Q: Tell me about the moment when you realized "Cops" was such a big part of the country's pop culture.

A: When my kid came to me one day and said, "Oh, my friend was on 'Cops' last night!" (laughs). And probably when I started seeing all the spoofs. "Saturday Night Live" and "Mad TV" have done things on us, "The Simpsons" has done things on us. And [the movie] "There's Something About Mary." "Cops" was in that.

Q: What do you think about "Reno 911"?

A: Oh, I love it! It's flattering and amusing.

Q: Do you think there's a limit to how much you can say about law enforcement?

A: You know, I don't think it's just about law enforcement I think it's about human behavior, and it's about man in extremes, or woman in extremes. It's about a context that involves a lot of different issues. It's not only law enforcement, it's crime and punishment, it's good and bad. All the fundamental themes of literature and film are involved in that arena.

Q: Now here's an urban myth: When police officers see people with either a big, baggy shirt or no shirt at all, does that signal to them that they are using drugs?

A: (Laughs) No. Not at all. Because crimes and misdemeanors come in all shapes and forms. You can have a crew cut, wear glasses, be dressed in a suit and be a murderer or a criminal or a crook or a con man, or you could have tats all over your arms and wear baggy pants and be an upstanding citizen. But having said that, if you see a bunch of kids riding around in a car and they look like gangbangers, chances are they are gangbangers, you know what I mean? And if it's a new car, chances are they might've stolen it.

There are just fundamental experiential issues that aren't so-called "profiling," which is a big controversy. There is natural profiling that takes part of life, and it's based on experience. If you see a guy with tattoos all over his arms and wild, dilated pupils and he gets on an elevator with you, are you going to feel comfortable, as opposed to a guy that gets on that has a Brooks Brothers suit and a briefcase? I mean, how are you going to feel at midnight on an isolated elevator? Well, cops use that same technique based on their experience to look at likely suspects.

Q: What about that theme song? Are you going to use that forever?

A: Oh yeah, it's too much a part of [pop culture]. It's too associated with "Cops," and I wouldn't change it. I was fortunate to find it, and I'm happy I put it in.

Q: Well, that's all I've got. Do you have anything that you'd like to say about the show?

A: I would say that "Cops" is an existential variety show with authentic décor. How's that? Designed to instruct and entertain, in equal parts.

(Published on CourtTV.com May 5, 2005)