After seeing their press release for the new reality show on E! - I can be nothing but appalled. While we all know that E! stands for Entertainment, with their new show, "What's Eating You," it also stands for "Extreme" or "Excessive" or "Exploitative" or just plain reckless and irresponsible. From their press release, this is not about help or health or saving lives. This is about trying to turn a deadly disease into entertainment - and that is wrong for those affected, it is wrong for advertisers thinking this is a way to reach their customers, and it is wrong for a brand - no matter how cheesy that brand may be. And yes, I'm speaking to you E!.
This is an excerpt from their release:
"From bizarre rituals to extreme habits, the worlds of the twelve brave participants will be an open book. From a woman who must put countless packets of artificial sweetener on anything she eats – including burgers and salads – to another who spends hours each day at different fast food restaurants, just to purge privately in a bevy of single-person bathrooms around town, audiences will follow the lives of people whose food behaviors are consuming and threatening their lives. Other stories include: a young man who will chew and swallow an entire pack of gum instead of eating food to feel satiated; a young woman who will eat ant-covered food out of a trash can, only to then purge in whatever she can find – her boots or even her purse; a young man for whom food is “dirty” and who, as a result, has a compulsion to wear rubber gloves before touching anything related to eating; a woman who drowns all of her food in gravy and has found other creative ways to eat around her gastric band and a young mother who wears layers and layers of clothes in the scorching Phoenix sun just to hide a body she feels is “sickly deformed” as a result of her pregnancies. In a particularly heartbreaking case, viewers also are introduced to a woman who was recently homeless and will drive 2 ½ hours to purchase her comfort food: white chalkboard chalk.
With the help of trained medical professionals, highly experienced therapists and nutrition specialists, these patients will attempt to begin the long, painful and often shocking journey to recovery. JD Roth, Executive Producer and CEO of 3 Ball Productions, said, “One might assume that a show about severe eating disorders would focus solely on participants’ bizarre behavior around food; but this show really is about the incredible fortitude and strength of people with intense obstacles to overcome, and how they strive to get their lives back on track. We’re very proud to be working with E!, not only in shedding light on a dangerous issue, but also in offering hope and a path to recovery.”
Seriously? Is this the work of anyone even remotely responsible? Regardless of what their logo says with the big E!, it is just plain EXPLOITATIVE. There is a difference between an article labeled "Stars, they're just like us," and a show that focuses on the very worst of a disease. Their press release alone reads more like a script for a freak show barker than for television programming. I could expect to see this in the darkest recesses of the Internet, but not on an FCC controlled medium like television.
If you are wondering how a legitimate brand could produce programming that delves into a subject like eating disorders responsibly - just look at A&E's "Intervention" [www.aetc.com/intervention/about]. Their approach actually does focus on hope, on redemption, and on life. They even went further to create something called the Recovery Project, to create outreach material, and to encourage people to participate in helping others. It is a responsible approach that positions the A&E brand in a responsible light.
E!? nothing of the sort. Even before their show goes live, they are focusing on "a young woman who will eat ant-covered food out of a trash can," who will "purge into whatever she can find - her boots or even her purse," or of another who feels she is "sickly deformed."
As for the producer of the show - 3 Ball Productions - they were the company that produced The Biggest Loser. A show that has been blamed for actually causing a contestant to develop an eating disorder. It is hardly any wonder as to the integrity of the producers behind the show when they've received some startling reviews by their own employees.
All in all, E! actually has a good brand for the type of programming they have developed in the past. So why would the risk undermining tne value of their brand and the brands of their advertisers by producing content like this? There is only answer - greed and a desire for short term profits over long term growth. It is a shame. But that is what happens when you make decisions that aren't focused on brand growth.
E! we can only watch and see what happens.
Think Cannon
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