New York — He produced a reality television series aimed at highlighting the New York Police Department, a real-life legal drama involving the city and the show’s producer, Jordan McGraw – the TV executive’s son. “Dr. Phil” McGraw.
The city sued the younger McGraw and his production company this week for breach of contract and obtained a court order preventing them, at least temporarily, from selling or publishing any footage from the unfinished and unreleased show, tentatively titled “Behind the Badge.”
“Dr. Phil” McGraw, a clinical psychologist turned television personality, hosted the series, interviewing officials and appearing at crime scenes. The episodes were scheduled to air on his MeritTV cable and streaming channels, where he had previously done segments featuring the police department.
On Thursday, McGraw’s lawyers filed a request to move the case from New York state court to federal court.
The city abandoned “Behind the Badge” late last year, hours before then-Mayor Eric Adams stepped down from the City Council in favor of Zahran MamdaniAfter she said she expressed her concerns to McGraw about the quality and content of the documentary show.
The “raw episodes” provided to the city by McGraw’s company, McGraw Media, were mostly “unedited footage” and included material not permitted under the production agreement McGraw had with the city, such as discussions of sensitive operations and the identities of undercover officers, crime victims and witnesses, the lawsuit said.
“Intended to highlight the extraordinary work the NYPD does” with special behind-the-scenes access, “Behind the Badge” at times portrayed the nation’s largest police force negatively, violating convention, the lawsuit said.
Jordan McGraw and McGraw Media have “since disavowed their obligations” and attempted to wrest editorial control of the project from the city, “risking immediate and irreparable harm” to the city, the lawsuit said.
Chip Babcock, an attorney for Jordan McGraw and McGraw Media, said the lawsuit came as a surprise “because the publication of any programming was not forthcoming.” He said McGraw Media “has worked with the city to address the requested modifications” and is prepared to continue to do so. Babcock said the company would seek to overturn the court order as soon as possible, calling it an unconstitutional prior restraint.
New York City partnered with McGraw Media on “Behind the Badge” last April, signing a three-year contract the day after a federal judge dismissed federal corruption charges against Adams. The case was dismissed in part because the Justice Department requested the mayor’s help in President Donald Trump’s anti-immigration campaign.
last week, WNBC reported The Adams campaign paid $500,000 to another Jordan McGraw company, Fairfax Digital, to produce social media ads.
Adams defended Jordan McGraw’s work on “Behind the Badge,” writing in a social media post on Wednesday that he “brought an exceptional talent to revealing the inside story of the dangers NYPD officers face every day.”
“He and his team thoroughly addressed all concerns raised by City Hall,” Adams wrote. “I’m proud that the work they did tells the true story of our brave police officers. Heroes don’t wear capes, they wear blue uniforms. I get that. And I hope America can see that, too.”
“Dr. Phil” McGraw, who hosts a “Behind the Badge” segment on his daytime talk show, caused a stir last year when he and a camera crew joined with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents for raids in Chicago and Los Angeles.
In the lead of a show that now pits the city against his son, he goes on a ride with the NYPD in 2024 for a segment of his MeritTV show “Dr. Phil Primetime.” In it, he spoke with officers at police headquarters and interviewed two top officials, including former Public Safety Deputy Mayor Kaz Daughtry and former Department Chief John Chell. Dr. Phil’s company, Merit Street Media, filed for bankruptcy last July.
The “Behind the Badge” contract, a five-page production agreement signed by Jordan McGraw and Adams’ chief of staff Camille Joseph Varlak, called for McGraw Media to produce up to 17 episodes per year, but gave the city the right to opt out by Dec. 31, 2025, the last day of Adams’ term.
On that date, Varlak told McGraw in a letter that the city “can no longer meet its obligations” to the project. She explained concerns about the production process, including poor editing and the inclusion of content that the city found objectionable in the “rough cuts.”
Under the production agreement, the city reserved the right to remove what it deemed “unusable content,” including inaccurate or confidential material, footage that revealed investigative techniques and anything that could harm public safety or public confidence.
The show contains, among other things, footage of an officer entering a security code at the entrance to a police station, discussions of encrypted police communications, and blurred faces of people arrested by police but not yet tried or convicted of crimes, the lawsuit said.
In her letter, Varlac warned McGraw that publishing any such footage would violate the contract.
According to the lawsuit, McGraw Media has indicated that it will not accept any of the city’s edits and that it intends to distribute the reported material and is seeking a buyer to broadcast the show.