reality blurred + archives + July 16 to July 22, 2000

week of July 16, 2000

Salon: JFK Jr. was the first reality TV star.
Salon: JFK Jr. was the first reality TV star. Joan Walsh looks at JFK Jr.'s media-saturated life and death--plus other news-driven media events--and compares them...
PBS may bring back "An American Family."
PBS may bring back "An American Family." The original reality TV show--PBS' "An American Family," which followed a single family for a year--is coming back...

Gretchen chats about alliances, conflict and the cow incident.
Gretchen chats about alliances, conflict and the cow incident.In an MSN chat, Gretchen gives the details about life on the island, and also tells us...
is Josh gay?
is Josh gay? Under the headline, "Hunk In A Bunk: Big Brother hears that Josh may be keeping a secret," an article on Big Brother's...
ccoming soon: handcuffs and high school.
coming soon: handcuffs and high school. Upcoming reality TV shows include FOX's American High, which follows a group of Chicago high school students for...
news station's union wants Survivor plugs stopped.
news station's union wants Survivor plugs stopped. A Kansas City chapter of American Federation of Television and Radio Artists filed a complaint on behalf of...
spoilers? everyone's predicting Survivor's winner.
spoilers? everyone's predicting Survivor's winner. From people analyzing the CBS Web site gaffe to an Atlanta firm that is "staking [their] corporate necks" on their...

bigbrotherblows.com goes blank after cease-and-desist order.
bigbrotherblows.com goes blank after cease-and-desist order. Damn lawyers. It's called "criticism" and "parody." (spoiler warning: this story also contains info about the alleged winner as...
there's hope for Making the Band after all.
there's hope for Making the Band after all. Although it was pulled during sweeps month and is not on ABC's fall schedule, The Orlando Sentinel...
Bunim-Murray: help us with the next Real World. plus: casting the dateless for a Sept. Singles Cruise.
Bunim-Murray: help us with the next Real World. plus: casting the dateless for a Sept. Singles Cruise. The producers of The Real World and Making...

Survivor knocks All-Star game out of the park.
Survivor knocks All-Star game out of the park.Not surprisingly, Survivor had 24.5 million viewers last week, easily trouncing NBC's broadcast of the All-Star game, which...
Big Brother to be on six nights a week.
Big Brother to be on six nights a week.CBS is adding another night of Big Brother to its lineup. The live, Julie Chen-hosted hour during...
hack or not, CBS site was right about booted Survivor.
hack or not, CBS site was right about booted Survivor.+ the latest: Tonight's episode proved that the revealed information was correct: Greg got the axe....

NBC says it'll catch up.
NBC says it'll catch up.NBC's west coast president, Scott Sassa, says the net "cannot ignore the public's interest in these different kinds of reality...
Greg disses The Early Show.
Greg disses The Early Show.Greg turned down an interview on CBS' morning show, becoming the first booted cast member to not appear on the Bryant...
Real World nominated for an Emmy.
Real World nominated for an Emmy. The Real World: Hawaii has been nominated for an Emmy in the "achievement in nonfiction programming--picture editing" category (#79...
note to journalists: please watch the show before you write about it.
note to journalists: please watch the show before you write about it.Three reporters/writers with The Denver Post embarrass themselves with a profile of Greg's expulsion...
Will/Mega gets banished.
Will/Mega gets banished.In another pointlessly drawn-out hour-long live episode of Big Brother, Will--also known as Mega--got the axe, and bolted without even saying goodbye to...

ratings for Survivor up again "despite Web site leak."
ratings for Survivor up again "despite Web site leak."And this is a surprise?...
Will's in-house actions questioned.
Will's in-house actions questioned.According to the Philadelphia Daily News, Khalid Abdul Muhammad said Will "is in danger of losing his 'ghetto pass'" because of...
Melissa: "Reality TV is a way for people to be voyeuristic."
Melissa: "Reality TV is a way for people to be voyeuristic." Melissa went on The Real World because she "needed to do something dramatic in...
Kelly wanted by police for fradulent credit card use.
Kelly wanted by police for fradulent credit card use.Kelly and a friend used a stolen credit card, and now she's wanted by police in North...

secrets revealed: Curtis and Josh were--gasp!--models.
secrets revealed: Curtis and Josh were--gasp!--models.The night Will left the house, Josh finally revealed his oft-talked about secret. Much to Curtis' surprise, Josh's secret was...
CBS: "We have nothing to apologize for."
CBS: "We have nothing to apologize for."The network's president and CEO, Leslie Moonves, defended Big Brother and Survivor, saying the shows give people something to...