Jon and Kate + Lots Of Hate Has Millions Tuning In
The season premiere of TLC's "Jon and Kate + Eight" premiered on Monday and attracted 9.8 million viewers, beating out the "Lost" season finale which had 9.3 million viewers. On every level, that's wrong. Then again, we are seeing a shift in people's viewing habits and while "Lost" is a creative and entertainment masterpiece, even Jack and crew can't beat out real-life human drama and the public's voyeuristic inclinations.
A build up to the Season 5 premiere was a landslide of tabloid stories featuring the estranged Gosselins, including allegations of infidelity against them both, ongoing hysteria over the exploitation of their children, the vast sums of money they get for their "reality" show and all the freebies Kate keeps sticking her sweaty, greedy paws out for.
The above clip is painful to watch, as it's clear that Jon and Kate are not comfortable being around each other and each tries to proclaim they are there for their kids and doing their best to make it work. Um...ok. Forgive my reluctance in buying that argument, but if they both wanted to do what's best for their kids and salvage their marriage, they'd walk away from the monster they've created and works things out in private.
But here in lies the issue. What Jon and Kate have done is essentially trade their marriage, privacy and happiness in for cash, fame and recognition — let's face it, the results were a foregone conclusion.
I can't think of one reality show featuring a family that has gone well. MTV has single-handedly killed three marriages: Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey, Carmen Electra and David Navarro and Travis Barker and Shanna Moakler. What exactly did the Gosselins and TLC think would happen?
The sudden mix of money and fame can be a lethal combination for even the best intentioned people, but when you have two mismatched people like Jon and Kate, it's almost a guarantee for disaster. Clearly Kate made the decision to trade her soul for money and Jon turned in his nutsack long ago.
Regardless of how you feel about Jon or Kate Gosselin, what people are watching, paying for and finding entertainment in, is the disintegration of a family. Is this the kind of thing we as a society should be encouraging? Perhaps America should take the advice of Kate's own sister-in-law and stop watching all together.
Of course, I refused to watch from the beginning, so I can't miss what I didn't have!
Follow Technorati