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In the last week, we’ve witnessed the Balloon Boy saga, seen the Gosselins back in court, and heard that the Duggars had their first grandchild — and are expecting baby #19. Octomom has her own show, too, just in case you’ve forgotten about her.
I have to ask this question: would you allow your family to be filmed for a reality TV show? And why do you think so many parents are opting to create shows around their lives? According to the police, the Heene family put on the runaway balloon stunt in order to get their own reality show. By now everyone knows that they appeared on Wife Swap a couple times, and that they met in acting school in Hollywood. I’m not sure why this couple thought it was OK to pretend their son’s life was in peril in order to get publicity (who in their right mind would do something like that?) butΒ I do know that it seems like more people out there are hitching their wagon to the reality show star. I’m just not sure why it’s happening.
Liz Searle, author of Celebrities in Disgrace calls it “Attention Desiring Disorder” on her blog, and I think that’s a fitting description. It seems like people can’t get enough of fame in the form of T.V. time, in spite of what the camera reveals about their lives.
Although I like watching Supernanny and think the parents go on that show because they’re desperate for help, I have to say that it seems like most of these reality show families, the Gosselins included, are doing this for money and fame. (Actually, maybe infamy is a better word in their case!) Last week, our parent blogger Annita Woz said that she was glad Jon stopped production on the show, and I agree with her — though I wonder about his motives. If the show goes off the air (and it looks like it’s going to), the outcome will be a good one for the kids. (Can you imagine having your parents go through a divorce, and then having your family’s reactions filmed and preserved for all posterity?) The cynic in me thinks Jon Gosselin might be willing to have them filmed again if the price is right, but I really hope I’m wrong about that.
This all makes me wonder about the future of these reality show kids. In fact, I’ll bet you any money some of these children are going to sue their parents some day for 1) Putting them on TV in the first place and 2) For back pay. The whole thing is just pretty sad to me. I think it would be very easy to lose sight of what it means to be a family when there’s a camera in your face all day and everyone is expecting you to perform. Because when you come right down to it, there is very little “reality” in reality TV at all. What do these shows do to these families in the end, after all — and what do they do to us as we watch them implode?
Where do you stand on family reality shows? And what do you think should happen to the Heene parents?
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October 19th, 2009 at 2:42 pm
Octomom? Where’s the air-sickness bag?
October 19th, 2009 at 6:27 pm
I can’t even stand to have the drapes open at night; can’t imagine airing my family’s dirty laundry in front of the whole world. Kids deserve privacy and the right to a safe place in the world. Shame on these parents for infringing on their children’s lives like this!
October 19th, 2009 at 11:12 pm
I just read that on the Today show Kate Gosselin said that her kids “miss” the taping of the shows and are sad that they aren’t on it anymore. Hmmm….
October 20th, 2009 at 7:37 am
All these reality shows are really just a sad testament to where we are as a society. Every time we turn on the tube, we cast our vote saying that’s what we want to see. With their comparative normality, the Duggars are surprisingly still on the air, but their ratings are far lower than shows where disaster reigns. Networks don’t care that they’re peddling garbage as long as that’s what we’re saying we want to see. Bottom line, these people are in it for the money and we’re paying their bills. As for the Heene parents? They should pay for the tax dollars they wasted but other than that, we’ve gotten what we asked for. “Show us your oddity and we’ll put you on TV and pay you millions for doing practically nothing.” Seems like just another get-rich-quick scheme to me.
October 20th, 2009 at 9:20 am
Mom2-2Boys, I agree with you that kids need privacy. It doesn’t seem fair to me that these parents are making these publicity decision for their kids, who virtually have no voices of their own in this matter. (I guess you could argue that kids don’t have the right to make those decisions themselves, but maybe they should!) Annita, I heard that Kate Gosselin said that her kids missed the film crew too, and I’m not buying it. Maybe they do miss them, but I’m guessing they’d be happier if their lives just went back to normal. And Mom4Life, I think you said it best. Yes, the Heenes should definitely pay back the money. I really feel sorry for their kids. I think these parents’ brains are addled by all the fame and money.
October 20th, 2009 at 10:39 am
I definitely would not want to have my family on a reality show. There are some that I feel are valid such as Supernanny, even Wifeswap or Trading Spouses if the families enter into the agreement with the right intentions (to learn and improve their own families). As far as the Gosselins go, I’m on the fence as I know they are not filmed every day all day long and I can’t say I wouldn’t NEED to do the same thing for financial reasons if it were offered (can you imagine the grocery bill alone, much less hopes of all going to college one day). I feel Kate G. is being honest and the children do miss the crew and being filmed though it may be more because of the special things they get to experience and not necessarily about being on TV. Folks like the balloon people should have psychiatric testing seeing as how they TOLD their kids to lie to the police, media, etc. It’s one thing to tell your child to tell “Aunt Hazel” they loved a gift to spare Aunt Hazel’s feelings but anyone who teaches their kid to tell a boldface lie has something wrong with them.
October 20th, 2009 at 2:26 pm
I doubt that the Gosselin kids truly miss the show. It’s all they know, and they know that Mom is sad about it, that’s all.
October 20th, 2009 at 10:33 pm
I can say with relative assurance that I would NOT want my kids featured on a reality TV show. I, for one, am quite grateful that my kids are still at the cartoon stage in their TV preference lives, so I have a ready-made excuse why I don’t watch any of those so-called “reality-based” shows. Now I am no rocket scientist or even a psychologist, but it seems to me that just the fact of having a TV crew invade your home on a regular basis would make life rather UNreal …. perhaps even SURreal. Ugh. No thanks.
And as for the Heene’s … Oh, groan. Clearly another example of the insane lengths that some folks will go to for their 15 minutes of fame. I wonder how they will enjoy that 15+ minutes when it’s spent in court dealing with the charges that are most-likely going to be filed? I agree with greengirl11, above: Encouraging one’s children to blatantly lie to authorities for a little publicity is NOT setting a good example for them, or their copycats, in life.
(Okay, I’ll step down from my soapbox now … hehe)
October 28th, 2009 at 7:34 pm
Its like ancient Rome…the TV is the new coliseum.