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Kid Nation: Hungry Kids: 1 Chickens: 0
I have nothing but respect for children who live and work on farms throughout the world, and people who kill and prepare and sell meat and chicken to the rest of us. But there is still something about seeing a 15 year old behead two chickens while 38 other kids look on in horror that is not my idea of entertainment.Who is the audience for this show? Clearly, not young kids. Why else would CBS post a warning on the screen before the beheading:
"CAUTION: The following scene may be intense for young children." This begs the question, if it's too intense to WATCH the scene, what about the fact that kids were actually IN the scene?! Never mind kids, it was too intense for this adult. Watching this show is a strange experience indeed.
On the one hand, it's blatant exploitation for the sake of the almighty rating. On the other hand, the children seem to really be coming together, for the most part, offering what appears to be genuine support for one another; creating camaraderie.
But last night it was a competition between children who loved animals, especially the heart-breaking nine year old Emilie, and those who craved protein. You get the picture.
At the heart of Kid Nation is a contrived sensationalism at the expense of its young contestants. And contestants is exactly what they are. The show is structured to encourage competition, not community. And as far as kids finding a way to make a better world than the one they've inherited, consider this: each week the teams, known as "districts" compete to become the Upper Class. The producers have imposed a caste system on these kids, turning Bonanza City into, well, any city. So much for the lofty promise of a better world. Here the losing team cleans the outhouse. Second to last cook for the entire group. Above that group of "chefs" are the "merchants" and they run the store that sells candy and soda and items you would think useless here, like bicycles. But the group they all strive to be is the "upper class", which is literally described as the group that earns the most money and doesn't have to do anything. If this sounds alarmingly familiar, like say, your life, then you're not alone. The money these kids earn is in direct proportion to their status in Bonanza City. Not much world change going on here.
So is Kid Nation nothing more than mini-me in a dust bowl town?
And what about the long term emotional impact of these events on the lives of these kids? What about Emilie, who wanted so much to leave the show because she was horrified by the chicken slaughter, but remembered her mother's words--for her to be a "rough and tumble cowgirl"--and so she stayed.
But at what cost?
[Editor's Note: Don't miss the views and opinions expressed by several pediatric experts and others about KidNation over on the Safety4Kids blog]
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Technorati Tags: KidNation, CBS, reality TV, stress, family, children, parenting
(c) John Peters. Image from BigStockPhoto.com
