Survivor to Segregate New Season's Teams

[cheezedoodle]

Posted: 8/23/06 at 7:52pm

Some may call it exploiting racial tensions. CBS calls it darn good television

Jeff Probst popped in on The Early Show Wednesday morning, confirming the reports that the 20 castaways for Survivor: Cook Islands will be grouped by race, with competitors divided into four tribes consisting of whites, blacks, Asians and Hispanics.


Apparently, "separate but equal" holds only the warmest of connotations for Mark Burnett.


Like a good host, Probst had nothing but praise for the producers' controversial brainchild, calling the exercise in segregation a valuable social experiment, rather than a stunt to dig up some controversy--and raise ratings.


"The idea for this actually came from the criticism that Survivor was not ethnically diverse enough, because for whatever reason, we always have a low number of minority applicants apply for the show," Probst said.


"So we set out and said, 'Let's turn this criticism into creative for the show.' And I think it fits perfectly with what Survivor does, which is, it is a social experiment. And this is adding another layer to that experiment, which is taking the show to a completely different level."


Different level, yes. Good level, still to be determined.


"If I had been a producer of this show, it is not an idea I would have come up with or given approval to," Robert Thompson, director of the Center for the Study of Popular Television at Syracuse University, told E! Online. "It's like a return back to segregated leagues in sports. The unseemly interest this will invite certainly is not worth the dramatic elements it's going to bring."


"To the less-than-open minded person, it is very easy to trash us," Burnett explained to Entertainment Weekly. "But we're smart enough to not make it negative. We're smart enough to have gotten rid of every racist person in casting."


Though more to the point, the producers haven't and can't weed out every racially sensitive person in their audience who may take offense to the seemingly archaic, and potentially socially irresponsible, division.


While the 43-year-old host admitted that the players themselves had "mixed reactions" to the racial separation, he made clear that the division was not meant to incite any controversy, add to the tension during the competition or simply be viewed as a gimmick.



Four teams of...

Updated On: 8/23/06 at 07:52 PM

[zzannahk]

Posted: 8/23/06 at 7:54pm

maybe we should stick "prussian blue" on their own secluded island too!

[Elphaba]

Posted: 8/23/06 at 8:00pm

hmmm, doesn't make sense to me. If the complaints have been not enough racial diversity......than equal it out, but I don't think the way to do that is 4 teams, each a different race

[neddyfrank2]

Posted: 8/23/06 at 8:23pm

Why is this show still on?

[pab]

Posted: 8/23/06 at 8:28pm

Because people watch it.

[luvliza89]

Posted: 8/23/06 at 8:58pm

Then the question should be, why do people watch it?