"Private Channel" is the third segment of the thirty-third episode and the ninth episode of the second season (1986–87) of the

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed be ...

The Twilight Zone ''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology television series created by Rod Serling. The episodes are in various genres, including fantasy, science fiction, absurdism, dystopian fiction, suspense, horror, sup ...

''. In this segment, a teenage boy accidentally acquires a

telepathic Telepathy () is the purported vicarious transmission of information from one person's mind to another's without using any known human sensory channels or physical interaction. The term was first coined in 1882 by the classical scholar Frederic ...

link to those around him, but the responsibility proves more than he is prepared for when he becomes aware of a

suicide bomber A suicide attack is any violent attack, usually entailing the attacker detonating an explosive, where the attacker has accepted their own death as a direct result of the attacking method used. Suicide attacks have occurred throughout histor ...

aboard his flight.

Plot

Aboard an airplane, teenager Keith Barnes annoys those around him with his drum sticks and argues with a flight attendant when she tells him to turn off his

portable radio In radio communications, a radio receiver, also known as a receiver, a wireless, or simply a radio, is an electronic device that receives radio waves and converts the information carried by them to a usable form. It is used with an antenna. The ...

. When he accidentally drops his radio into the bathroom sink, a lightning storm transforms it into a

tuning device. He begins to hear the thoughts of the people around him in the plane, and then even sees the world through their eyes. From his seat, he sees a man strapping a bomb to himself in the bathroom mirror. He tells the flight attendant about the bomb, but due to his earlier shenanigans she does not believe him. Keith recognizes Mr. Williams, the man seated next to him, as the bomber by the ring and wristwatch on his right hand. He puts his radio headphones back on and learns that Williams is distraught over the death of his wife and child in an airplane crash due to airline negligence. He intends to destroy the plane as revenge. Keith tries to talk him out of it. This backfires, as the revelation that Keith knows of his plan galvanizes Williams into taking immediate action, getting up from his seat and grasping the bomb trigger. Keith sneaks up behind him and puts the headphones over his ears. Hearing the pleading thoughts of the frightened passengers, Williams is filled with remorse and relents. As Williams is taken away, Keith decides he has had enough of the radio and drops it on the floor, allowing it to be crushed by the departing passengers.

External links

* {{The Twilight Zone (1985 TV series) episodes 1987 American television episodes The Twilight Zone (1985 TV series season 2) episodes Television episodes about telepathy Television episodes about terrorism fr:Fréquence spéciale