“Fake Famous” (9 p.m., HBO, TV-MA) explores the ephemeral world of social media influencers. It examines the behind-the-selfie mechanics of concocting celebrity. The producers take three “random” people and use the tricks of the trade (like purchasing followers) to turn them into fleeting stars.
YouTube has made creators and critics of us all. Among the more amusing recent offerings is “Green Screening myself into 9-1-1 on Fox … because it needs it” (www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyjZt60RNJ4).
In this clever clip, a real fireman edits himself into scenes of the Fox series to comment on the action and how badly the melodrama reflects real firefighting techniques.
Reflecting professional knowhow and exasperated sarcasm, these clips pack a lot of comedy into a couple of minutes. His glib insistence that the glum characters just start spraying water on the fire reminds us of how series manufacture fake tension at the expense of common sense. In a just world, our fireman will become a star in his own right. Or at least a consultant on scripted shows.
— Far from the fakery of contemporary media, the repeat documentary “The Jazz Ambassadors” (9 p.m., PBS, TV-PG, check local listings) demonstrates the power of art to “sell” our nation’s image abroad.
“Ambassadors” takes place in the mid-to-late 1950s, as Washington still reeled from the McCarthy era and the Soviets were scoring propaganda points by pointing out the hypocrisy of the segregated South in the so-called “land of the free.”
At the request of the State Department, musicians including Dizzy Gillespie, Duke Ellington, Dave Brubeck and Benny Goodman toured the globe on behalf of the United States. Ultimately, more than 20 jazz tours visited 100 countries, including the Soviet Union itself. Quincy Jones recalls one memorable concert when students who had come to throw stones at the U.S. embassy were instead delighted by Dizzy Gillespie’s band.
Not every musician was so enchanted with the campaign. Efforts to get Louis Armstrong to tour were scuttled in 1957 after white rioters in Little Rock, Arkansas, prevented Black children from attending school. The normally affable Armstrong declared he could not abide racism and would not lie about his feelings for propaganda purposes.
Even after their diplomatic success, the jazz ambassadors were demonized by some in Congress who questioned the expense of their concerts and criticized their music as mere noise.
“Jazz Ambassadors” is a thoughtful look at how the “soft power” of culture and the arts can prove as influential as military hardware.
— A year into the COVID-19 crisis, “Frontline” (10 p.m., PBS, check local listings) recalls the pandemic’s emergence in China, looks at missteps that may have prevented its containment and examines the secretive nature of the Communist regime and its reluctance to allow inspections from outsiders and the World Health Organization.
— A selfish weatherman (Bill Murray) falls into a cosmic joke in the 1993 comedy “Groundhog Day” (8 p.m. and 10:30 p.m., AMC, TV-PG). Arguably the greatest movie ever made about a minor holiday.
TONIGHT’S OTHER HIGHLIGHTS
— Lessons from an old friend on “Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist” (8 p.m., NBC, TV-14).
— A mother-daughter pair spark suspicions on “The Resident” (8 p.m., Fox, TV-14).
— Jane Lynch and Jim Gaffigan appear on “Finding Your Roots With Henry Louis Gates Jr.” (8 p.m., PBS, TV-PG, check local listings).
— A mass shooting on “FBI” (9 p.m., CBS, r, TV-14).
— The triplets mope about turning 40 on “This Is Us” (9 p.m., NBC, r, TV-14).
— Martin likes to help out on “Prodigal Son” (9 p.m., Fox, TV-14).
— COVID quarantine forces a suspect to snap on “FBI: Most Wanted” (10 p.m., CBS, r, TV-14).
— A backward glance on “Nurses” (10 p.m., NBC, TV-14).
— Making a case on “Big Sky” (10 p.m., ABC, TV-14).
CULT CHOICE
A drifter (John Garfield) can’t keep his hands off the unsatisfied wife (Lana Turner) of a diner’s owner in the 1946 adaptation of James M. Cain’s novel “The Postman Always Rings Twice” (8 p.m., TCM, TV-PG). A more explicit 1981 remake starring Jack Nicholson and Jessica Lange was no improvement on this original.
SERIES NOTES
A dirty deal on “NCIS” (8 p.m., CBS, r, TV-PG) … “To Tell the Truth” (8 p.m., ABC, TV-PG) … Nail salon suffering on “Two Sentence Horror Stories” (8 p.m., CW, TV-14), followed by a repeat episode (8:30 p.m.).
Dre’s advice on “black-ish” (9 p.m., ABC, TV-PG) … Jared is warned on “Trickster” (9 p.m., CW, TV-14) … Comparative strengths on “mixed-ish” (9:30 p.m., ABC, TV-PG).
LATE NIGHT
Jimmy Fallon welcomes Drew Barrymore, Talib Kweli and Nilufer Yanya on “The Tonight Show” (11:35 p.m., NBC) … David Duchovny, Elizabeth Olsen, Wright Thompson and Matt Cameron visit “Late Night With Seth Meyers” (12:35 a.m., NBC).
