Has anyone heard about this upcoming reality tv show? The premise is that 40 kids, ages 8 through 15, are placed in one of those old, deserted mining towns in Arizona with supplies, and have to build their own working society for a month. They had to keep everything going (cooking meals, cleaning up, a government to organize things) with minimal adult supervision.
Obviously, there were cameras (and the associated adult workers) around them all the time, and according to the Wikipedia article there was a child psychologist and medic onsite at all times, although they tried to not interact with the kids much. The children could also leave if they wanted to, but no one was kicked off.
The trailer and kids's bios are at the first link, and are quite interesting. Some of the kids are extremely well-spoken, and have very fascinating takes on world problems.
If I remember to, I'll probably watch this show when it comes out. I would have loved to do something like this as a young teen.
Posted by Mucus (Member # 9735) on :
Too bad the presence of the adults will keep it from degenerating into a "Lord of the Flies" rerun Posted by aspectre (Member # 2222) on :
But it is: the adults are cannibals feasting those kids. And the kids aren't even being paid as much as tv extras, let alone as much as television actors.
Posted by MidnightBlue (Member # 6146) on :
Except that at the end of each episode, one kid wins a solid gold star (I think solid) worth $20,000. That's much more balanced than most reality shows, where one person wins maybe $1 million, but most people walk away with nothing. That's not bad for a month's work, if you do enough work to earn the star.
Posted by pooka (Member # 5003) on :
A gold star would actually have to be fairly heavy to be worth $20,000. Like, probably enough to be fatal if it were placed on your head in the wrong way.
P.S. I guess that's only 30 ounces or so, but still.
Posted by scholar (Member # 9232) on :
It's New Mexico, not Arizona (being born in that area, I have to point it out).
Posted by Farmgirl (Member # 5567) on :
I already discussed this on another forum, but the more I read about it, the less I like it.
From what I can tell from the bits they are putting online, the kids don't truly "build their own society". They are told in advance what form of government they will use, and the overall structure of how it will run.
In addition, they have "contests" to determine the what "class" they will be in their society (like merchant, kitchen worker, upper class, etc.) That isn't at all how real life is either.
Seems there was quite a bit of grown-up setup in advance, so it is just the kids trying to work within that framework.
And I don't understand why they think they need to give kids a totally unfamiliar 1880s-style community to do this -- most don't have the skills to work in that environment because they never have. If they had placed them in a more modern community, it might be very different.
Just my two cents.
Posted by James Tiberius Kirk (Member # 2832) on :
quote:NYTimes:
The 22-page agreement leaves little room for parents to argue that they did not know what their children might encounter. As is standard in such agreements, the parents and the children agreed not to hold the producers and CBS responsible if their children died or were injured, if they received inadequate medical care, or if their housing was unsafe and caused injury.
But while such agreements might be standard for adult participants in a reality show, it also takes on a different tone when the minor and the parent are being held solely responsible for any “emotional distress, illness, sexually transmitted diseases, H.I.V. and pregnancy” that might occur if the child “chooses to enter into an intimate relationship of any nature with another participant or any other person.”
Covering all the bases, I see.
--j_k
Posted by Lisa (Member # 8384) on :
I'd like to see it, but I would prefer that it be done right. Observe from the outside. None of those lame color-war contests.
Posted by The Flying Dracula Hair (Member # 10155) on :
I think this is a VERY beyond neat idea if it excluded all the elements included to make it a reality TV show. I think the constant filming of the kids alone ruins it as an interesting social experiment, I'd be more excieted about it if instead each child (and adult surpervisor) had kept a journal. And I agree with Farmgirl, there's more than a few reasons why this isn't going to "prove" anything.
Posted by Chris Bridges (Member # 1138) on :
I'd be more interested in the kids could choose their own government. Wonder what America's reaction would be if they went with communism, or theocracy.
If there's no conch shell, I'm not impressed.
Posted by Irami Osei-Frimpong (Member # 2229) on :
quote:In addition, they have "contests" to determine the what "class" they will be in their society (like merchant, kitchen worker, upper class, etc.) That isn't at all how real life is either.
It would be more true to current life if they substituted standardized tests and family circumstances.
Posted by neo-dragon (Member # 7168) on :
quote:Originally posted by Farmgirl:
From what I can tell from the bits they are putting online, the kids don't truly "build their own society". They are told in advance what form of government they will use, and the overall structure of how it will run.
In addition, they have "contests" to determine the what "class" they will be in their society (like merchant, kitchen worker, upper class, etc.) That isn't at all how real life is either.
Seems there was quite a bit of grown-up setup in advance, so it is just the kids trying to work within that framework.
And I don't understand why they think they need to give kids a totally unfamiliar 1880s-style community to do this -- most don't have the skills to work in that environment because they never have. If they had placed them in a more modern community, it might be very different.
Just my two cents.
No kidding. All that BS about seeing if kids can make a better society is just the sales pitch. It goes without saying that's it's a carefully controlled game which has been heavily edited to try and make it entertaining, just like all reality tv.
Posted by MidnightBlue (Member # 6146) on :
quote:Originally posted by pooka: A gold star would actually have to be fairly heavy to be worth $20,000. Like, probably enough to be fatal if it were placed on your head in the wrong way.
P.S. I guess that's only 30 ounces or so, but still.
I believe the video said 20 ounces, but I'm not sure.
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