reality blurred + archives + January 18 to January 24, 2009

week of January 18, 2009

China's first democratic election of a third-grade hall monitor documented in Please Vote for Me
Tonight, after today's historic inauguration of Barack Obama and television's non-stop celebration of this part of our democracy, PBS' Independent Lens will re-air a documentary...
TV critics press tour highlights: Bruce Jenner faces off with critic, RuPaul versus Rodi
After spending nine days in L.A. for the TV critics' winter press tour, where broadcast and cable networks offered the cast and producers of their...
Showtime's This American Life cuts episodes due to lack of stories
Showtime's Emmy-winning documentary series This American Life, which is essentially a televised version of the long-running public radio show of the same name, may not...
MySpace will let its users plan the wedding for contest-winning couple
MySpace and Endemol are producing a 13-episode online reality series that will give one couple an all-expenses-paid wedding, but at a huge price: they have...

Michelle Obama's stylist developing a reality show
Johnny Wright, Michelle Obama's hairstylist, has signed with a production company to develop a new series, but apparently not because of his connection to the...
San Francisco auditions offer lessons in anatomy as Kara continues to add value
After episode three, American Idol feels stronger to me than it has in years, and everything's landing with just the right amount of balance. New...
Erinn Lobdell: "I don't get annoyed easily, and if I do, I'm really good at not showing it"
Erinn Lobdell was actually the second person I spoke with in Brazil, at a river-side camp that served as Survivor Tocantins' comparatively miserable Ponderosa. (The...

John Wilkes Booth conspirator's relative threatens American Idol's judges
In a strange segment, a man whose great-great-great-great-grandfather (or maybe just three greats) was jailed for helping John Wilkes Booth after Booth assassinated Lincoln showed...
Networks, producers will pay $4.11 million to settle reality workers' overtime lawsuits
Two 2005 class-action lawsuits against two reality TV production companies and several networks have been settled for $4.11 million. Shriver v. Rocket Science Laboratories (which...
Sandy Burgin: "They have contestants and they have characters, and I think I'm a character"
"They have contestants and they have characters, and I think I'm a character," Survivor Tocantins cast member Sandy Burgin told me during our conversation in...
Michael Irvin-hosted reality competition winner will join Dallas Cowboys training camp
The winner of a future Spike TV reality series will earn a spot at the Dallas Cowboys' training camp, and thus the possibility of actually...

Sanjaya received a $100,000 advance for his book, would pose nude in a "classy" way
Sanjaya Malakar, the popular American Idol 6 contestant who inspired crazed fans and lots of loathing, was on Howard Stern this morning, He was promoting...
Countdown to the Crown ends tonight with viewers four joining Miss America pageant
The Miss America pageant airs tomorrow night on TLC, and four of the finalists will be selected by viewers after tonight's conclusion of Countdown to...
My Life on the D-List will have "a talk-show feel"
The "celebrity oriented" fifth season of Kathy Griffin's My Life on the D-List will have "a bit of a talk-show feel," according to USA TODAY,...
John McCain confirms Cindy McCain rejected Dancing with the Stars 8
John McCain confirmed that his wife Cindy McCain rejected an offer to appear on Dancing with the Stars 8. Last week, Page Six cited an...
Sydney Wheeler: Survivor may lead to fame but "I just don't know if that's what I want"
Sydney Wheeler is a model who was, unsurprisingly, recruited at a bar to be a part of the Survivor Tocantins cast. Sydney is nice and...