Broken windows, deformed bumpers, gutted carcasses… The new issue of Most dangerous roads in the world sets the scene from the very first seconds. The film crews went on the path of Interstate 35 which crosses the United States from north to south, passing in particular through Texas, where the cameras of the W9 magazine landed.
On this axis that connects Dallas to San Antonio, a person is killed every two hours. “We chose the United States because we always have the impression that it is a big power, a big country and that there are no worries about the road. Quite the contrary”, corrects Stéphane Carpentier, the face of the program. To demonstrate this, the production of the show chose to recover images from American television, social networks or surveillance cameras. These videos are combined with interviews with security officials, law enforcement and motorists conducted on site.
A situation “unworthy of the United States”
“The documentaries are ultra-spectacular by the force of the images but they are intelligently enriched by all the testimonies collected on the spot, judge Stéphane Carpentier. We also show that people are doing everything to reverse it. The floor is therefore given to the rescuers or to the fellows who come to the aid of the injured but also to the people who profit from the business of accidents, like an image hunter connected to the radio frequencies of the police and emergencies. to film disasters up close and resell the extracts to local channels.
Alcohol, excessive speed, using your phone while driving, the causes of these clashes are multiple and, in the case of Texas, rather similar to those that we know in France. “The episode proves that the first world power does not have crazy infrastructures and that it is a little unworthy of the United States, indicates Stéphane Carpentier. The interest of this series is also to show French viewers that in our country, it’s not so bad after all. The educational aspect of this issue is notably fueled by a sequence in which we learn that the Texan police officers distribute warnings with all their might, without ever imposing a fine.
A “curiosity plug” effect on TV
In the next two episodes, the magazine will focus on a high-risk highway in Bulgaria and then two Spanish road networks heavily used by French tourists. A choice that helps to rekindle interest by showing different countries and multiple problems. “You have to choose a destination that is either exotic or known to the French,” explains Stéphane Carpentier. Bulgaria is a country with a real infrastructure problem and that arouses curiosity. »
A bit like these “curiosity plugs” that form when a road accident has just occurred, the W9 program relies on this fascination that some French people feel. Proof that it works: the first two issues broadcast in February 2021 had attracted 952,000 viewers on average for a 4% audience share of the general public.
“These are dramatic situations, obviously, but always spectacular in terms of images”, recognizes the journalist who has not finished venturing into a hostile environment. By the end of the season, he will play a new show, a cousin of this one: The most dangerous cities in the world.