Emil and Oleg only know America from what they've seen in the movies. And those ridiculous Jerry Springer and Jenny Jones show topics that most American roll their eyes at anymore take on a new outrageousness when the viewer imagines how these shows must look to someone from another country. Herzfeld is better at showing how the media can shape and influence the news. Some of the police and fire officials seem less concerned about solving the crime than they are about ensuring their department gets credit for the arrests. That press coverage influences the government leaders who make budgetary decisions.
Good press means more money.
And when Jordy gets suspended, it isn't for nearly committing an act of vigilante justice. Instead, it's for an encounter early in the movie with a thief in Central Park. The thief's television interview creates a public relations problem for the fire department, so Jordy has to go. The movie also has a self-awareness about it that is appropriate for a tale about how popular culture influences public perception. At this stage in his career, it seems as if DeNiro realizes it is impossible for him to disappear into a character the way he did in the '70s.