"In the summer of 1961 Stanley Milgram, a 27-year-old associate professor of psychology at Yale University, conducted a series of controversial experiments designed to test the limits of obedience. Volunteers in the experiment were told to give electric shocks to a person they could hear screaming in pain in the room next door. Seemingly ordinary people turned into torturers.
Much has been written about Milgram and his experiments. But there's a missing part to the story -- the voices of people who took part. Gina Perry goes in search of those who participated in what's been described as the most widely cited and provocative set of experiments in social psychology.
This documentary was awarded a silver medal in the history category at the 2009 New York Radio Festival Awards. It was first broadcast on ABC Radio National's Radio Eye program in October 2008."
This is a compelling audio documentary about a endlessly fascinating and disturbing subject - our capacity for obedience, brutality and doing what we know is wrong. The piece explores layers of discomfort - both the findings of the study and the ethics of the experiment itself.
If you are into psychology and all things neuroscience - you'll find it a bit of a beachy, easy-to-find subject - a famous study that's already received a lot of attention and exploration... but if you don't know much about this - the program is a great introduction.
The show is well structured and neatly put together - the ensemble of interviews is
comprehensive and satisfying - and the archival material is truly excellent. It's a very straight program - the producers maintain a safe distance from the subject and it's aurally very conservative. The online presentation of this program is pretty lame - a few bald words with no images or references - not much chop for a subject with such rich archival resources and references.
IMAGES: Obedience image http://www.mytvblog.org/?p=2735, Milgram experiment http://rogerhollander.wordpress.com/2009/02/13/questioning-a
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