From Cops to Steven Seagal: Lawman, reality TV has a long, fraught history with on-camera crime-busting. A&E has now joined the fray with Live PD, a series that will follow police officers in six cities in real time. The episodes will be aired on a delay due to, as Variety puts it, “the unpredictable nature of law enforcement activity.†In case you’re wondering if this is simply the case of a network failing to read the room, the answer seems to be quite the opposite, with A&E offering up Live PD as a direct response to the current cultural conversation about policing. “Every day the demands for more transparency in law enforcement continue to come from both civilians and police across the country,†said A&E/Lifetime executive vice-president and general manager Rob Sharenow. “Live PD will not only highlight the difficult work being done by our men and women in uniform as they go out into the streets never knowing what to expect, but also answer citizens’ calls for clarity.†The show kicks off the first of its eight two-hour installments on Friday, October 28.