Whoa.

[emmagrant01]

Remember back last December when I said I might be on a reality show? Well, the premise of the show was that poor families would compete for a house in a nice neighborhood, and they were considering filming it on my street. Basically, the neighbors were to vote off one family every week, and the one that was left would win the house.

They had it narrowed down to three streets in my town and mine was one of them. We did interviews and everything, but in the end, they didn't choose ours. Now I think I know why.

I don't know what to say. Except that if they'd chosen my neighborhood, it would have been a very different show. :-/

Comments

[aidenfire]

That sounds...kinda snobby. The premise, I mean, not you at all. And, I'm totally not asking this at all, because that would be prying and prying is rude You think you know why? Mind sharing? and of course I'm not a rude person, and I'd never think as to inquire into someone's personal buisness.

(really, though, feel free to totally ignore that last bit. I don't mean to pry, honestly. Just curious)

[aidenfire]

Or. Um. Is that a link? *confused and feeling slow*

[emmagrant01.livejournal.com]

Ooops! Link is fixed now! :-P

[aidenfire]

Ahhhh. Wow, that's some...weird shit.

[accio-draco.livejournal.com]

Your second linky doesn't clicky.

*flails*

[emmagrant01.livejournal.com]

Thanks! Fixed now. :-)

[emmagrant01.livejournal.com]

My neighbors aren't as conservative as the ones in the neighborhood they picked -- at least that's the way they make it sound in the article. But that's aparently what they were looking for: a clash of white conservatives with a diverse group of families.

[wordplay.livejournal.com]

For some reason I've assumed you were in 04 (because of the stuff you've said about your house, maybe? also because it's my favorite area of town and think everybody should live there :D) and if that's the case of course it would have been different in your neighborhood. :)) I mean, that's not to say that it would have been all happyperfect (because let's face it, there is some ugliness under that veneer, and it's very difficult to talk about) but it COULD have been a really interesting show about people struggling to come to terms with the things that they don't want to feel but do. As it is, it looks like it was filmed in Round Rock or one of the southern MPCs, so the character would be completely different.

I'm still not sure what I think about this show, but I can see how it got very ugly very quickly.

[emmagrant01.livejournal.com]

*grins*

We looked in 04, but we couldn't afford anything! ;-) It is a nice area though, and I like to go shopping there. My favorite yarn store is down that way, actually.

It's funny that the prodcuers didn't sell the show to us the way it's described in that article. They were all, "It will be such a feel-good show because families who would otherwise struggle will get a chance to live in your lovely neighborhood!" They made it sound like it would be blue collar people with four kids or something. On the pre-interview papers we had to fill out, there was a question that asked "What types of people would you not want to have in your neighborhood?" And we wrote "conservative Christians, small-minded bigots, racists, or homophobes." Think that did it? ;-)

I can't believe you're mooooving! We need to get together this summer. Any chance you'll be up Austin way so I can give you a send-off party with all the other HP folks in town?

[parthenia14.livejournal.com]

Yerrch - that's typical reality TV, isn't it, setting up an extreme, making sure that the fireworks will go off, and then backing off with baby-round eyes saying: Ooh! We never mean that to happen!

*hates tv executives with a terrible hate* *lies down*

[emmagrant01.livejournal.com]

Blech!

[sciencegeek.livejournal.com]

I'm going to guess that you guys weren't conservative enough?

[emmagrant01.livejournal.com]

That'd be my guess. See my reply to tea_and_toast above for specifics. :-P

[sciencegeek.livejournal.com]

I'm kinda not surprised that it was pulled. Heh. I wonder what they would have done if they used your neighbourhood...

[kirili.livejournal.com]

Don't take offense please but:

0o Wtf? How is encouraged predjudice supposed to inspire harmony and whatsit?

Or is this another "War is Peace" thing? *squint*

Great to see you're back btw.

[emmagrant01.livejournal.com]

0o Wtf? How is encouraged predjudice supposed to inspire harmony and whatsit?

Just typical reality show fare, I guess. *sigh*

[1-bad-idea.livejournal.com]

"(which worried that conservative Christians would appear like overly judgmental buffoons)."


I understand the other reasons for not wanting to air the show, but that one just takes the cake.

[emmagrant01.livejournal.com]

Yeah. I'm thinking, "And that's a problem because...?" ;-)

[1-bad-idea.livejournal.com]

My thoughts exactly. I guess the truth hurts!

[carentan.livejournal.com]

Wow.

[eskimosatan.livejournal.com]

...and that, ladies and gentlemen, is why I do not watch reality television. ::headdesk:: It's sad, really. We have to get our kicks by humiliating people in the name of 'entertainment.' Okay, so by the end of the show they wanted everything to be peachy keen and have all these prejudices wiped away. But, really, they're counting on the ratings and they're counting on getting those ratings by people being so shocked and appalled by the neighbor's attitudes that they just have to watch what happens next. ::grumbles:: All right, fine, I'm leaving off because I'll go on about this forever.

Oh, and the ass in the snow? I used to live in Austin, Texas and it snowed there and I went out in a bikini and made snow-angels until I was ordered to come inside. The first time the boyfriend saw snow (born and raised in Houston), he walked around in it with his sandals on. I think it's that shock of, "My, god, snow? I wonder what frostbite feels like?" Cute icon, though... and nice ass.

[emmagrant01.livejournal.com]

Yeah, that pretty much sums up reality TV, doesn't it?

*grins* I liked that ass too. I miss it. *eyes running shoes*

[primroseburrows.livejournal.com]

..and that, ladies and gentlemen, is why I do not watch reality television. ::headdesk:: It's sad, really. We have to get our kicks by humiliating people in the name of 'entertainment.'

This is my main gripe about reality TV. From American Idol to Survivor to America's New Top Model, it's all about the humiliation. Sure, there are other things that happen, but. Couldn't there be a competitive show (like AI) where people aren't made to feel like idiots? Star Search was basically AI without the teasing.

[batagur.livejournal.com]

Apparently your neighborhood didn't have enough potential bigots. You should be proud. ;-)

[emmagrant01.livejournal.com]

Yes, I know! I'm actually pleased about that. I don't think my street is quite as white as they were looking for either. :-P

[tastyeyeliner.livejournal.com]

Ugh, that makes me sick.

As a Hispanic young woman with a questionable sexuality, I would not even think of something like that. "Yes, let's take our family in front of the public eye and let some Republicans stereotype us!"

I wouldn't tear myself down to such a level for a house..How horrbile.

Although I would have loved to see a mainstream television corporation actually show a gay couple giving eachother affection on prime time, the 'comments' made would have put me in an uproar fit to destroy something.

Thank God they stopped it. I can only imagine the backlash...
But I'm sorry that you didn't have a chance at a nice house :\

[emmagrant01.livejournal.com]

Actually, I wasn't going to be one of the ones competing for the house -- I was going to be one of the neighbors. And dude, I would have welcomed that gay couple with open arms. So would several other of my neighbors. It just wouldn't have had quite that spark they were looking for, I guess. :-P

[tastyeyeliner.livejournal.com]

It's too bad. Your entire fandom would have been sitting on the edge of their seats. I'm assuming ABC needs the ratings.

-giggle-

[phoenix-starr.livejournal.com]

I heard about that show in the radio. They canceled it because of some controversy or another.

[emmagrant01.livejournal.com]

Yup, that's what the article says.

[jedirita.livejournal.com]

As soon as I heard this show was set in Austin, I knew it was the one you had been approached for. Aren't you glad you weren't involved!

Although I find your comments about the background of this interesting, that they found your neighborhood to be too open to diversity.

So what I want to know is: they did film the whole thing. So I presume that family still got the house? It would be a serious bummer to go through the whole thing and then have ABC say, "Hey, we're not running the show, so you have to move out of the house." Surely they didn't do that, did they?

And there are some reality shows that I really like. Like those "1900 House" shows. (Dude, I would TOTALLY go on that show!) And I can't watch Extreme House Makeover without bawling. And the one episode of Nanny 911 I saw was very educational. And I also liked the one episode of Amish in the City that I saw. It's just things like Survivor and "Geek Boys Date Hooters" that don't interest me.

[lauramcewan.livejournal.com]

Popping in for Emma here - yeah, the end of the article she linked says that a family did get the house, but they won't say who and they can't move in until August, when the show would have wrapped airing.

[emmagrant01.livejournal.com]

I see Laura's answered your question already. ;-)

I had mixed feelings about it back in December because it just sounded to good to be true, you know? There's always a catch, and drama is what makes "good" reality TV. I was wondering if I wanted to be involved in something like that or not.

Oh, I hear you on Extreme Makeover! Those are always tearjerkers. And Supernanny is one of my favorite shows! I actually like it better than Nanny 911. :-D

[jedirita.livejournal.com]

Oh, maybe I saw Supernanny. I don't know which one it was. That's the thing about these reality shows, though, they breed so many knockoffs.

[sorion.livejournal.com]

I hate reality tv... It's either boring (why the hell would I care what strange people do in a house together?) or just very offensive (like the above...)

And the stations' reaction was so typical, it's not even funny. "Oh, dear. We didn't know that mingling conservatives and minorities would cause problems..." -_-

[emmagrant01.livejournal.com]

*snerk* Oh, I think they knew what they were doing. The surprise was that people didn't want to see it aired.

[sorion.livejournal.com]

And a good thing that, too...

[smoonyc.livejournal.com]

Ooooh! You're in Austin? Are you going to the Austin City Limits festival in September? :) I shall be there...but still having a hard time finding a hotel very close to Zilker Park (a friend of mine is Jewish and cannot take any kind of transport..save for her feet...on Friday night or Saturday b/c of the Sabbath).

Any tips on places to check out?

Boo on ABC!

[emmagrant01.livejournal.com]

You know, I've never been to ACL! Every year I end up traveling that weekend. But when it gets a little closer, ask me again. We should meet up! (And there's a bunch of cool slashers in Austin!)

[charlotteschaos.livejournal.com]

Family Research Council (which worried that conservative Christians would appear like overly judgmental buffoons).

Oh yes imagine someone getting THAT impression. *rolls eyes*

[littleroo27.livejournal.com]

I'm sure that's why it wasn't chosen. I mean, what would the show be like if everyone was like "hey, welcome! want to have a BBQ this weekend and we can chill?"

[x7bren.livejournal.com]

I'm going with the " overly judgmental buffoons" kick. Woo Hoo you conservative bastards!

[rectpropagation.livejournal.com]

ABC made all the typical moves they think will make them look better.

"I didn't think that people would be this nervous," Andrea Wong, head of alternative programming at ABC, said before Wednesday's decision to ditch the show.

Minority employee publicly stating that she thinks the show was ok. CHECK.

"One of the horrible things that is happening right now in this country is that people are so afraid of a healthy debate," he said.

Blame the viewers for being too sensitive and claim they're actually doing a good thing. CHECK and CHECK.

ABC said last week that "given the sensitivity of the subject matter in early episodes we have decided not to air the series..."

Gloss over the reason for the cancellation. CHECK.

... at this time.

Leave open the possibility of doing the incredibly bad idea anyway. CHECK.

How can they not understand that everything except the actual cancellation makes them look worse? Wong comes off looking like a token (We're not racist, we know an Asian lady!), they have the audacity to call all having minorities perform antics for prejudiced white conservatives to convince them to let them live next to them a debate, and then act like the complaints had nothing to do with the cancellation.

They are going to the special Hell.

[emmagrant01.livejournal.com]

They are going to the special Hell.

LOL! I'm almost sorry we upset the balance in our interview by talking about how liberal we were. I suppose basing the show in a moderately diverse neighborhood wouldn't have had the same punch the TV execs were looking for, though. Ah, well.

Good points, all.