The concept behind the latest iteration of the Survivor series–segregating contestants on the basis of race–is one of the most repugnant ratings stunts in the history of mass media. Unfortunately, the show’s producers are merely capitalizing on a disturbingly ominous cultural trend: it’s acceptable to be a racist again, at least in the former CSA. For your consideration:
- Virginia Senator George Allen’s bone-headed “macaca” remark directed at S.R. Sidarth, a Democratic operative who happened to be of Indian descent
- Tramm Hudson, a Florida congressional candidate, commenting that “blacks are not the greatest swimmers.”
- A Baptist church in Mississippi that voted out a 12-year-boy who happened to be biracial because church leaders did not want his black relatives attending with him
- A white bus driver in Lousiana forcing black children to the back of the bus to make room for white students.
In the opinion of this liberal Northerner, we ended Reconstruction much too early. Of course, racist tendencies are not exclusive to the South and all of these incidents were quickly condemned in local media. But it’s so dismaying to see this kind of behavior nearly forty years after the peak of the civil rights movement. It makes me wonder if this current wave of bigotry is simply a continuation of our long and dismal xenophobic history or if it’s being provoked by other factors such as economic uncertainty or post-9/11 fear of the Other.
Whatever the reason, let’s hope low ratings force CBS to make this season of Survivor the last. Hell, maybe the bad publicity will be sufficient to kill off the entire misbegotten genre of reality television. Except Amazing Race. That show is kind of cool.
Although I’m not exactly thrilled by the new format for the teams on Survivor, I think a lot of the criticism of it ignores the fact that in order to win the show, the contestants are going to have to play nice, because to win on Survivor you need the other contestants to vote for you. My guess is that the “storyline” of the season will go something like “wonderful person gets along with everyone, wins $1 million.” Survivor, while not always what I’d call the classiest program, does have some savvy producers, and I’d be really surprised if they don’t spin the race thing in a positive way in terms of the storylines on the show.
Of course, there’s a reason the Amazing Race wins all the Emmys — restraint. This season will feature a team of two Muslim-American buddies who seem to be cast in the “sympathetic favorites” role. And the producers aren’t trying to turn it into a controversy to cash in.