HANSEN: Well, certainly it's compelling television. What makes this worth hour after hour after hour of primetime television? Nevertheless, is it worth going back time and time and time again? There's so many other great stories out there in the world. This is certainly a problem, one you've certainly exposed. And I think other guys figure well, you know, the police can't be everywhere, Dateline can't be everywhere, what are the chances I'll get caught?ĬONAN: And one of the questions that's been asked by your critics is about proportionality. Often they will say okay, is this Dateline, or even: Tell Chris Hansen I said hello.īut you have these guys who I think have a compulsion or an addiction that overrides their ability to say, okay, I may get caught here. HANSEN: Well, I think for some people it is, and we see this in the chat rooms when the guys are talking to the decoys. Some of the guys have even seen the program before, and it's almost like: oh, you're that guy, this is that show, you want me to sit over here.ĬONAN: They've seen the show before. It's almost as if they want to get this off their chest. And as we see time and time again, most of the guys actually sit down and talk. But more often than not, we have the element of surprise on these guys who come in.
HANSEN: Well, each time, you know - the first time you go out there, you know, your heart's in your throat a little bit. What is it like walking into that room time after time?
Nice to have you on the program today.ĬONAN: I know you've done more than half a dozen of these stings in various parts of the country. E-mail is begin with Dateline NBC correspondent Chris Hansen, the host of "To Catch a Predator," and he joins us by phone from LaGuardia Airport in New York City. What do you think: voyeurism or busting predators, crime fighting or entrapment? The number to give us a call is 80, 800-989-TALK. Later in the program, a closer look at the newest casualty numbers for Iraqi civilians. Of course, many other critics praise it as an important public service. Some critics worry that this show isn't fair and that it doesn't cover news, but creates news. The program pays its sources and works closely with police. "To Catch a Predator" raises some uncomfortable questions about the number of sexual predators online for sure, and about journalism, too. CHRIS HANSEN (Host, "To Catch a Predator"): Did you have a hard time finding the place, or…ĬONAN: After an often awkward and humiliating conversation, the man leaves and is then swarmed by police officers who've been waiting outside. (Soundbite of television show, "To Catch a Predator") And once the meeting's all set, the would-be molester is surprised by the show's host, Chris Hansen. NBC News doesn't run the stings, that's the work of Perverted Justice, an online watchdog group. And it's surprisingly easy to find such men online - by the show's count, hundreds so far - dozens of whom have either pleaded guilty or been convicted.
#Dateline to catch a predator series
This is TALK OF THE NATION, I'm Neal Conan in Washington.ĭateline NBC's series "To Catch a Predator" uses actors who pose as teenagers, under-aged kids, to lure older men into what they think will be sexual encounters.