[3][4] It was directed and produced by Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato, originally for Channel 4 in England,[5][6] where it was released as Videos, Vigilantes and Voyeurism before being picked up by HBO.
[5] It also includes appearances by lawyers William Kunstler and Alan Dershowitz, as well as Jonathan Turley and Fox News president Van Gordon Sauter, all commenting on the potential negative impact of a surveillance society.
[5][12] Walter Goodman of The New York Times wrote, "Despite the sound bites about security versus privacy, 'Shock Video' is too busy running juicy examples, like do-it-yourself porn movies, to go more deeply into the issues that it raises".
[13] James Endrst of Hartford Courant wrote, "Try as it does to drape itself with philosophy, however, 'Shock Video' can't avoid exposing itself as little more than another piece of cheap exploitation -- a reflection of its own supposed nightmare".
[12] The Virginian-Pilot wrote that the most "shocking thing" about the program "is that any self-respecting cable channel would show it", stating, "It's easily the sleaziest episode in a generally sleazy series, 'America Undercover'".
[17] The New York Daily News called it "a shameless, sleazy, exploitive, hypocritical piece of claptrap, the sins of which equal or exceed any of those it claims to expose".
[23][25] Segments in the 2002 installment include couples who engage in sexual intercourse in front of a panel of judges; a three-man contest to see who can ejaculate the most in a 24-hour period; and topless women who participate in a relay race, in which they take turns licking whipped cream off of each other's nipples.
[23] Shock Video 2004: Too Hot for the Box was aired in 2003, and includes nude chefs in Canada, and bowling strippers in Germany.