Are Reality Contestants Entitled to Any Privacy?

When someone decides to become a contestant on a reality show, does that mean that they give up all rights to their privacy?

Sure when people sign up for shows like Moment of Truth or Amnesia they are asking for the personal lives to be delved into.  But what about other shows?

Let’s take American Idol as an example.  I think it’s reasonable for the audience to wonder about the past singing experience of any American Idol contender.

I myself did some searching to find out the past experience of the Top 12 men and the Top 12 women when the Top 24 was announced.  I checked for evidence of their skills in music, theater and modeling because I thought those were the things that could impact their success on the show.

But where is the line of what is relevant and what is just gossip?

Does it matter that David Archuleta had already done the arrangement of John Lennon’s “Imagine” that won him accolades from the judges in ‘70s week?  I would say yes, to some that changes the opinion of his abilities.

Does it matter that wannabe rocker Robbie Carrico’s hair might not be real?  For some people, the artist’s image has an impact on their opinion of his/her music.

But then we have the stories that clearly have no impact on the contestants singing ability.  Does it matter that David Hernedez might have worked at as a striper in a gay club or that Ramiele Malubay has some “racy” photos on a Facebook page?

Do you care that Amanda Overmyer was once convicted of a DUI?  I mean it would be different if she had skipped bail or it happened during the contest.  Don’t get me wrong, I think DUIs are a serious offense.  But Overmyer committed this offense two years ago, she plead guilty and took her punishment.

I learned in Journalism Law that once you step in the spotlight for your 15 minutes of fame you pretty much open your life to the media. 

I personally wouldn’t want anyone delving into my life like that.  But apparently the invasion has discouraged people from signing up for reality shows.

But as fans of the shows, how much is too much?  Do you really care this much about the contestants’ personal lives?

Supernatural Lives, But Will Dean?

Happy days are here – at least in my household.  CW announced Monday that it has picked up my favorite show – Supernatural.

CW has never properly supported the fan-favorite Supernatural, a show about the demon-hunting Winchester brothers that doesn’t quite fit in with the teen angst and reality shows filling the rest of the network’s schedule.

But when CW bumped Supernatural off the schedule to start showing repeats of the freshman series Reaper (who fate has not yet been determined), the small, but loyal Supernatural fan base reacted.  Blogs were written, petitions started, threats (as in ‘I’ll never watch CW again’) were made and a campaign to let CW know fans were watching, and would be missing, the Winchester brothers began.

But fans can now rest a little easy knowing the fate of its favorite series has been secured – at least for another year – and start focusing on the fate of Dean (Jensen Ackles) and the possibility of a spin off.

When we left the Winchester brothers last month, Dean was no closer to finding a way out of the deal he made with the crossroads demon last spring that left him with just one year to live. 

In fact, Dean was killed – multiple times actually – in the Groundhog Day-like episode “Mystery Spot” that was both funny (how many ways can we kill Dean) and horrifying when Dean was killed outside the loop and we got to see how his death changed Sam (Jared Padalecki).

We also learned in “Malleus Maleficarum” that when Dean does die he’ll go to hell where he’ll lose his humanity and become what he hates the most – a demon.

But now the Winchesters have another worry besides Dean’s impending death – a new enemy.  In “In Bello,” the last episode before the hiatus, the boys came under attack by the henchmen – or is it the henchdemons – of the new bad guy in town, a little girl (okay, she’s probably some badass demon who’s been around for centuries in a little girl’s body, but still) named Lilith. 

And Lilith doesn’t like the Winchesters.  I mean really doesn’t like them.  Not because they kill demons, but because she sees Sam as competition.  Apparently word hasn’t gotten to the demon world yet that Sam no longer has his powers.

Hopefully we’ll learn about a little more about Lilith later this season.  And I can only assume that the end of the season (although shortened by the writers’ strike) means the end of Dean’s year.  In which case, Eric Kripke has four episodes starting April 24^th to determine if Dean lives or dies.

I remain hopefully that together Dean and Sam will find a way out of the deal.

In the meantime, I have plenty of time to savor the idea of a potential Supernatural spin-off.  In a recent interview with Star Pulse, Kripke let it slip that he already has the premise for an off shot to the series in the works.  Unfortunately, he wasn’t very optimistic that his prequel would ever see the light of day.

In Kripke’s spinoff he’d take the modern day demon-hunting western back to the old west to follow the adventures of Sam Colt, possibly one of the original hunters, and his friends.  Might we learn more about the Colt itself, the gun that kills all demons instantly, and its origins? 

Sounds like a cool series to me.  Tell me where to tune it. 

Until April 24^th, I’ll bide my time with the Supernatural novel series and the new comic series coming out next month.