The next installment in the Harold and Kumar franchise is called "Harold and Kumar Escape From Guantánamo Bay," in which our lovable heroes end up in America's gulag when someone overhears them talking about "bongs" and thinks they're talking about "bombs." The criminals who run the prison camp on behalf of the US government evince distress at this because they hope that the world will see the secret prison as a clean, well-run, efficient gaol (filled with people so dangerous that they can't be convicted of any crime).

The focus on Guantánamo as a creative subject can lead to distortions, Admiral Buzby said. "It's as if someone turned up the gain on our life to make it sound really bad."

Some writers say it may be too late for anyone to change perceptions. "That one word – Guantánamo – has come to symbolize so much," said Michelle Shephard, a reporter for The Toronto Star, whose book "Guantánamo's Child: The Untold Story of Omar Khadr," is scheduled to be published next month. Mr. Khadr was first detained when he was 15.

