Has anyone else heard of this new reality show on CBS? It's a group of kids ages 9-14 who live in a city by themselves (of course they are filmed). There's a ton of controvery surrounding it, as some people are saying that it is child abuse, and others are pointing about a possible abuse of child labor laws.
To me, it's just stunning that a parent would let their kid go on that show.
Thoughts?
2
TAFKASP
Oakland, CA
June 2003
AUG 27, 2007 06:07 PM
I'm a big fan of Lord of the Flies and have always been interested in general social/psychological and authority type studies of people (especially as they pertain to large groups). So I'd be interested to watch this for educational purposes rather than entertainment purposes .
If there's anything that really sours me on the idea though, it's that it will of course be used to sell advertising and make a profit for the network. And I'm not a fan of exploitation, especially child exploitation on behalf of parents' long-lost dreams of stardom (e.g. child beauty pageants, etc.). So I really have to wonder what the parents' individual motivations are for entering their children into this show. If I were a parent, I don't think I would allow my kid to participate in this if he/she were under the age of probably 12 or 13; and it would totally have to be their decision.
I've been seeing advertisements for it on TV for a while, and I'd watch it. Just to see what kind of society kids would create. Although I'm pretty sure that most of it will be artificial, or shown out of context, just as with most reality shows, so we'll never really get to see how this type of social experiment would really turn out.
I can't really see crying out about abuse, without completely condemning child actors as a whole.
To me, it's no more exploitative than child actors in general, or child pageants (those in particular chill me to the motherfucking bone), or to a lesser extent, some organized sports. Parents act as agents for their kids, pressure them into situations they're to young to deal with before they're old enough to make decisions for themselves. Is the network taking advantage of children, or of more parents desperate to succeed vicariously through their offspring after perceived failure at their own life?
There have been game shows for little kids for years, and I've always felt that the reality series is an evolution of the game show (display some dubious skill, humiliate yourself on national tv, take home a cheque), so this was bound to happen. The only thing that seems really off-center is the fact that this is going to be in a prime time slot, rather than Saturday mornings. So CBS will likely be using children to sell advertising for decidedly adult products.
Morgan
SUICIDEGIRL
Illinois, USA
AUG 27, 2007 05:53 PM