David Simon, creator of HBO's acclaimed series The Wire, responded sharply to an online critic on X who claimed the show's portrayal of Baltimore's drug organizations was unrealistically "sophisticated."

"David Simon's 'the wire' is an excellent series but total fantasy," the critic wrote. "Black gangs are not that sophisticated, skilled, and organized. It's mostly low IQ petty crime. They're not even adept at that level."

Simon, a former police reporter, defended the show's authenticity by pointing to co-creator Ed Burns' background as a lead investigator on drug cases in Baltimore.

"You racist mutt. Ed Burns, the co-creator of the television narrative, was the lead investigator on the Title III cases that encountered all of the counter-surveillance and organizational depth inherent in the Baltimore drug game," Simon wrote on X, adding "We used the real."

The Wire, which ran from 2002 to 2008 on HBO, examined Baltimore's drug trade and its intersection with law enforcement, politics, education, and media. While it never won major awards during its original run, the series is widely regarded by critics as one of television's greatest achievements.

Related

When another user celebrated Simon's return to X, he clarified that he had only briefly visited the platform to address the criticism after seeing it shared on Bluesky.

"No," he wrote. "But someone sent me that on bluesky and I had to slide over for a quick f**k you."

After checking the online "race baiting," Simon says he's now "back to bluer skies."