NEWS JUNKIE POST
Dec 1, 2009 at 9:17 amReality TV Culture Makes Crash Landings
Andy Warhol was right. Still, I doubt even the Pop Art impresario who prized fame for fame’s sake, could have envisioned our current junk culture that nearly a decade of reality TV has spawned. These days has- been and marginal celebrities are tripping over “ordinary” people for their own swath of the cable TV terrain. All are singing, dancing, cooking, going in and out of rehab, having babies, raising kids, designing clothes, selling houses, eating bugs on remote islands, shopping or shouting in their quest to attain and stretch out those coveted fifteen famous minutes. And the bundle of cash that usually comes with them.
With a seemingly endless stream of reality shows popping up on almost every broadcast and cable network, you’d think everyone would be issued their own show along with their birth certificate. Or when they file for unemployment. Talk about moving the economic indicators in the right direction. But since almost everyone wants in, the competition for reality TV is probably fiercer than Yale Drama School admission or to score an extra gig on “Law & Order.” So serious contenders are taking their careers into their own hands waging campaigns and reality auditions usually by way of web sites and You Tube rants.
But within an increasingly crowded field, sometimes audacious maneuvers must be taken. Remember the Balloon Boy? For hours, a nation of cable TV watchers were captivated by images of an overgrown Jiffy Pop bag floating over Colorado all because we feared a six year old boy might be aboard the wayward vessel. Of course we now know he was –under parental direction–hiding in a box in the attic. The Henes, volatile veterans of “Wife Swap” and tired of waiting for their You Tube campaign to land them a show staged a national hoax. They got more than they bargained for. Maybe. After a round of morning shows proclaiming the veracity of their far-fetched tale, the little Balloon Boy himself outed the scheme by declaring on CNN that “it was for a show” and then threw up in front of his unconcerned publicity hound parents. The Henes have since plead guilty to minor charges and face jail time, but more likely a fine, when they’re sentenced December 13. Oh, yeah, and the day following their pleas, Balloon Dad, Richard Hene flew to NYC on an undisclosed network’s tab for a luncheon meeting.
The last few days, the spotlight has been on a Virginia couple, Michaele and Tareq Salahi who crashed President Obama’s first White House state dinner. The bold pair–notorious social climbers with a string of unpaid bills, bankruptcies and a star- studded facebook photo gallery–slipped through at least two Secret Service check points. And they did it with a Bravo cameraman and make-up artist along for the ritzy ride. Even NBC News anchor Brian Williams (who was an invited guest) sensed something was amiss, noting the couple’s entourage should have set off alarm bells. Oh, the cameraman was on hand, of course, to capture the festivities as part of Michaele’s audition for the upcoming Washington D.C. edition of Bravo’s astonishingly popular “Real Housewives” series.
This incident–thankfully just an embarrassing footnote in the Obama presidency–has exposed a serious security breach. Had the Salahis been well dressed terrorists with agile knife skills or concealing biological weapons, the President, Vice President and a room full of other dignataries could have been in jeopardy. From the “How the heck could that have happened department?” both the Secret Service and Congress are conducting separate investigations. Both Secret Service officials an the Salahis are set to testify before Congress on Thursday.
As for the Salahis–who,by the way,maintain that they were invited and they have a trail of heretofore unreleased e-mails to prove it– are basking in all the free publicity. They pulled out of an appearance on “Larry King Live” Monday night amidst rumors they were shopping an interview to the highest bidder and looking for something in $500,000 neighborhood. After a PR backklash, they appeared on the “Today Show” this morning, saying “we were not paid by NBC nor did we ever seek to be paid.” Sporting a subdued makeover which included a prominent cross around Michaele’s neck, the Salahis sang a patriotic tune praising both Obama and the Secret Service as they continued to proclaim their innocence as invited guests. White House spokesmen continue to assert the Salahis party crasher status. And news of their crashing a Congressional Black Caucus dinner in September was just released. For the record, they claim they were invited to that event, too, and didn’t make an early night of it courtesy of a security escort. There is more to this story, they assured Matt Lauer. And as soon as government officials allow them to, they will gladly tell it. “We hope to be sitting with you on your couch with those documents ( proving the legit invite) in short order,” said Tareq.
Can’t wait. If the White House version holds, the Salahis should have whatever book is available ( probably the Washington, D. C. Social Register) thrown at them, if only as a deterrent to copycat crashers. Potential charges are trespassing and lying to a federal agent. Unfortunately, if found guilty, their rewards will still most likely far exceed their penalties. After all what’s a fine or even a little jail time, when you’ve got a reality show waiting for you and the end of your grubby little rainbow.
Stay tuned. Or better yet, turn off your TV.
Excellent article and I do think the Salahis should be punished in some way. It seems more and more people want to do something outrageous to get their ’15 minutes’ of fame. Enough of this nonsense. Will the Salahis get more media attention and maybe even a book deal from all of this – as another ‘climber’ on the scene would say – “You Betcha!”