How Startups Will Help Jack Bauer on 24

After the first week of 24 last season, we took a deep dive into the learnings from the show. Earlier today we met with an informant on the east side of Manhattan to pick up a secret document that outlines how Jack Bauer will use Internet startups to help him thwart evil in NYC this season on 24. We are sharing this information now because we believe it to be prudent to do so.

In the early part of the season, Jack will use Twitter heavily. An undercover FBI agent will setup a Twitter account that uses secret terms that must be decoded using the Plurk API. Unfortunately this strategy only works for so long, as Jack Carlson notes that after the umpteen whale, Jack must look elsewhere. Jack considers using Facebook instead but realizes that Facebook isn’t a startup anymore.

Because the show was taped last year (but don’t worry, it was in real-time), Friendfeed becomes the new choice for Jack to communicate with his new girlfriend Renee. All messages are encoded into photo memes of babies. Each photo must be held up to the Car Finder app to determine which car Jack will find his next clue in.

Towards the middle of the season, Jack attends a networking function for former operatives and collects a bunch of business cards. He uses my startup for business card processing with our new “CTU” modified upgrade.

Jack stores all of his confidential files on drop.io because they are private and only Jack’s associates (like Renee and the President) can see them. Jack keeps track of his expenses (you think those helicopter trips are cheap?) using Zoho

After all the hoo-ha about location and how important it is for Jack to know where he and his “friends” are, Jack decides to use FourSquare. After three episodes Chloe explains that people can fake check-ins so they move to Gowalla where you gotta be where you say you are. Jack is shakened but not stirred regarding this news and realizes that he better put more gas into his Ford Fiesta so he can get closer to the bad guys.

A message is left on Jack’s aggregated Posterous account that says, “panda bear chain in 18k with diamond crust”. Jack is unsure what this means so he heads over to BING BING BING and learns that an Etsy seller in the Bronx has one of these chains for sale.

Before Jack heads to the Bronx, he takes out his CTUphone which basically is a dual-boot iPhone and NexusOne. He pulls up the Exit Strategy iPhone app and realizes his best bet is to take the D and sit at the back of the train.

Eventually Jack learns of the location of the perps and, using Outside.In, is able to stop for a bagel and a schmear before wooping some arse. With bagel in hand and the location of the bad guys (Madison Square Garden), Jack uses SeatGeek to figure out which seats the bad guys are most likely squatting in.

I don’t want to give away the names or any additional information regarding the bad guys for this season. The documents provided to me have all of this information but are embargoed until a later date.

After Jack and Renee finally catch the perps and just before they ride off into the sunset, they update all of their social media accounts using Postling. Moments later we see an additional message entered into Jack’s personal blog that says nothing but “time for real, real for time”. We are left with that image as Jack and Renee look at photos of their new son on Lil’Grams.

Editor’s note: We understand documents were provided to additional parties so leave a comment if you have further details on how startups will help Jack in NYC.