American Greed
| American Greed | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Documentary |
| Narrated by | Stacy Keach |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 10 |
| No. of episodes | 95 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Sharon Barrett Charles Schaffer |
| Producer(s) | Kurtis Productions |
| Location(s) | Chicago, Illinois |
| Release | |
| Original network | CNBC |
| Original release | June 21, 2007 – Present |
| External links | |
| Website | |
American Greed, also called American Greed: Scams, Scoundrels, And Suckers and American Greed: Scams, Schemes, And Broken Dreams, is a weekly American "true crime" television documentary series aired on CNBC. The program is narrated by Stacy Keach Jr. and produced by Kurtis Productions.
Subjects
The program focuses on the stories behind some of the biggest corporate and white collar crimes in recent U.S. history; examples include WorldCom, HealthSouth and Tyco International. In addition, stories about common financial crimes that affect scores of everyday citizens (Ponzi schemes, real estate and other investment frauds; bank robbery, identity theft, medical fraud, embezzlement, insurance fraud, murder-for-hire, art theft, credit card fraud, money laundering, and crimes committed by elected officials) are also featured.
Other topics have included the story behind Nevada's infamous Mustang Ranch, and rise-and-fall pieces on such highly successful, high-profile businesspeople as boy band impresario Lou Pearlman and Mark Dreier. The series has also produced specials on subjects like Bernie Madoff's life behind bars, 9-11 fraudsters, and how organized crime groups (including the U.S. mafia) earn money. In season four, the show covered stories including high-profile cases such as Raffaello Follieri, Marcus Schrenker, and Sholam Weiss.
Episodes
The show began airing its tenth season in 2016.
It has also created a spin-off series called American Greed: The Fugitives; this focuses on white-collar criminals who have not been brought to justice yet.
Criticisms
The show has been criticized for overestimating law enforcement's interest and involvement in combating fraud, as many frauds are discovered only after a number of people have been victimized and the largest fraud, Bernie Madoff's $65 billion Ponzi scheme, ended only after he confessed. In civil fraud claims, courts require that the fraud be pleaded with specificity and the proponent provide documentation corroborating the claim.[1] In the Madoff case, an early administrative complaint was dismissed for lack of evidence, with the claim of a Ponzi scheme deemed speculative and unsubstantiated using essentially the same standard federal courts employ in evaluating civil fraud claims.[2]
References
- Matulich, Serge; Currie, David (June 2008). "Richard Scrushy: The Rise and fall of the King of Health Care". Handbook of Frauds, Scams, and Swindles: Failures of Ethics in Leadership (Illustrated ed.). CRC Press. pp. 315–351. ISBN 978-1-4200-7285-3. OCLC 214285931. Retrieved 2009-05-19.
- Jennings, Marianne (August 2006). "Innovation Like No Other". The Seven Signs of Ethical Collapse (annotated ed.). New York: St. Martin's Press. pp. 214–216. ISBN 0-312-35430-4. OCLC 63297926.
- Markham, Jerry (December 2005). "Full Disclosure Fails". A Financial History of Modern U.S. Corporate Scandals: From Enron to Reform (illustrated ed.). Armonk, N.Y: M.E. Sharpe. pp. 360–364. ISBN 0-7656-1583-5. OCLC 58536658.
1. Fed.R. Civ. Pro 9.
2. Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662 (2009).