Everyday Randomness

Reality TV Hits An All Time Low

I normally don’t watch a lot of TV at night, and I tend to watch even less news in the late hours, but hubby left the TV on tonight, so I left it on as background noise. I wasn’t really paying attention, but something caused me to just turn and look at the TV for a minute. ABC News was on, and what I saw thoroughly disgusted me, and not in the that’s nasty I’m going to barf way, but in the OMG how can you do something like that way.

Apparently a Dutch reality TV show will showcase a terminally ill woman who wants to donate a kidney to someone on the waiting list. The 37 year old woman has a brain tumor that is untreatable, so she will sit on stage with 3 people hoping to receive her kidney. Viewers will be encouraged to call in or text message to try to persuade the woman to choose their favorite kidney recipient.

I’m sorry, but I believe this is the most unethical thing I have ever heard. How can you take something so serious as people who are dieing and seriously need organs to live and turn it into a TV show? It didn’t shock me very much to find out that the show will be produced by Endemol, the same company responsible for Big Brother and Fear Factor, especially after the Australian version of Big Brother failed to inform one of their contestants of the death of her own father. What is the entertainment industry coming to?

The Dutch government is completely opposed to the show, but there are no laws prohibiting it from airing. The Dutch Education and Culture Minister, Ronald Plasterk is against the idea.

The intention of the program to get more attention for organ donation may be applaudable, however based on the information I now have, the program appears to me to be inappropriate and unethical because it is a competition.

Pardon my French, but No Shit! As much as I already dislike reality TV, this is just plain out wrong. I believe there are much better ways to convince people to support organ donations that don’t involve making 3 people with serious illnesses basically grovel at the feet of a dieing woman in front of the world.