Discrimination and Inferences

So I happened to turn on this show on GSN and it was about discrimination. (Sorry, can't remember the title.) Basically, from what I gather from the section I was able to catch, this group of 5 people (the panel) sits in a room and decides which of 5 other people (the contestants) deserve to be given $25,000. In the first round, the panel only hears the contestants introduce themselves giving just name and address. Then, the panel decides to cut one person simply based on "First Impressions" (that was the title of the round). I wasn't able to catch much of the later rounds, but I believe in later rounds, the panel hears each contestants life story or why their reason why they deserve the money.

My comment is on the first section and deals with spin. See, an inference that the panel is discriminatory could be made after the first cut last night, depending on how it is related. For example, let me explain the first cut on the show I saw two different ways. Depending on my description, would you say the panel is discriminatory or chose a contestant to eliminate based on discrimination?

• A female contestant is asked to leave. She is a gay soldier, openly flaunting "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."
• A female contestant from New York City is asked to leave. While discussing the contestants, it was noted that she had a cocky, New York-style, even though she actually had a southern accent. Based on being from New York and the attitude that came across, she was chosen for elimination, even though there was another contestant from New York City.

Now, which version would make you think the panel hates gays? Now, both versions describe the same woman and both are accurate. However, does one leave more of a foul taste in your mouth?

See, this is a great example of spin. And based on which of my accounts you read, you could think the panel was discriminatory and hated gays, even though none of the panel actually knew she was gay when they voted her off.

So, what is the point of this show? I honestly don't know. However, it is great to see and be able to come up with my own spin, demonstrating how easy it actually is.

On a side note, there is one issue with this show. It is kinda ridiculous. See, the panel has to pick one of the five contestants to receive the money. So, if you were like me and picked a person from near where you live or used to live, you could look bad even though you were more interested in helping a could-be neighbor. (For example, one of the five was actually from where I used to have an apartment. No matter who the other 4 people were, I would have picked her. Now, would I have been called racist because I would choose the white woman over the black guy or the Hispanic guy? Can you see the problem with this show now?)

Then again, what if you feel no one deserves the money? If I felt that none of the five deserves $25,000 then how do I eliminate four of them? Maybe that is the point of the show. How would you decide which person to give the money to? On the other hand, is it really wrong if I would have decided to give money to a person who wasn't from the ghetto? See, I caught part of the background story round and one of the contestants was bemoaning how poor he was. Well, would I be looked down upon because I would choose to pick someone who could use the money in another way? See, I could be anti-poor or I could be pro-hard work. What will come across? Will spin make me seem like I hate the poor?

Be careful of social experiments on TV. Generally, they are poorly designed and have an agenda behind them. Actually, be careful of almost every reality show. Spin is a nasty thing and the only people better at spin than politicians and the media are reality TV editors. Remember that.