Unreal Reality TV

June 30, 2004

Don't you just love the sheep mentality in Hollywood. Once something catches on, the rest jump on the bandwagon and try to cash in. Reality TV is just one example. I don't know about you but I've had my fill of reality TV. According to a web site dedicated to reality TV, realitytvworld.com, there have been 178 reality TV shows so far. You've got people stabbing each other in the back to stay on an island. Brain-dead hunks whittle down a cast of bimbos who all cry they've fallen in love with him over a period of three or four weeks. Donald Trump goes on a power trip where he gets to fire someone at the end of each show. He's even tried to trademark the term ‘You're fired.' Didn't Mr. Spacely on The Jetsons beat him to it? We follow the exploits of people traveling by air in the series Airline . If they really want to see the seedy underbelly of America they should do a series called Bus .

 

Now comes the ultimate in absurdity. Al Sharpton is set to host a new reality series this fall called I Hate My Job in which he counsels disgruntled employees on how to find a better job. The eight male contestants in the show will quit their jobs and work with two “life counselors.” A California psychologist is one. Al Sharpton is the other. Isn't that like Bill Clinton giving marital advice? Does anybody know what Al Sharpton actually does for a living? What does he put for his occupation when he applies for a loan? Professional agitator? As I recall, the last job he applied for he got rejected. That job was for president of the United States.

 

That got me thinking. If Al Sharpton can get a reality TV job, there's hope for other out-of-work people out there. How about Al Gore in The Extreme Political Makeover . Maybe Howard Dean in Lunatic Eye for the Sane Guy . The trust fund Kennedy kids could star in American Idle . We could follow the exploits of ordinary people trying to get past the border patrol and call it Average Jose . Maybe a show about a poor Middle Eastern family that strikes it rich in the oil business and moves to a mansion in a posh California neighborhood called The Bel Arabs . The possibilities are endless.

 

I must admit that I've gotten sucked into some of the reality TV shows. I was glued to Last Comic Standing until I slapped myself in the face and got back to my own reality. I've studied this phenomenon for some time now and I've determined that we've turned into a nation of voyeurs. We're fascinated with the drama in ordinary people's lives. Perhaps it gives us a chance to contrast our lives with those of others and determine that we're pretty well-adjusted by comparison. Or, Maybe we just don't get out enough.

 

Then there are those who have taken the voyeurism to the extreme. Jenna Lewis, one of the Survivor All-Stars contestants, has turned up in a homemade sex video purportedly of her on her wedding night. Although the 26-year-old mother of twins and her 21-year-old male model husband have denied any involvement in the tape, the evidence is a bit suspicious. The domain registration information for the web site that sells 10-day access to the video for $40 was registered the Monday after their weekend wedding in Las Vegas. Coincidence? The couple's lawyers are seeking to block the tape's distribution. Wink-wink.

 

Let's just keep our fingers crossed that an Al Sharpton sex video doesn't surface.