"That's not gonna work," Fran said and resumed her scrutiny of the programming budget. She looked down in an obvious way just to clue in Donald that the conversation was over, but she could still sense his presence. Still facing down at her desk, she peered at him over her glasses.
"Is that all, Donald?"
The man seated in front of her trembled with excitement.
"How could it NOT work?" he exclaimed. He got up and started gesticulating wildly as he repeated the description of his show concept, bouncing around the room like a hamster hopped up on adrenaline. "It's got drama! It's got comedy! It's got--"
Fran held up a hand and thought about her words before she spoke in a measured voice. "Your show, Donald, involves filming random people just going about their daily business being slapped or punched by contestants on your show. It is--as you say--Candid Camera meets The Price is Right meets Fight Club. Are they supposed to win something, your contestants?"
"Yes! Money! See they spin this first wheel right, which lands on a dollar value, say $500. Then they spin another wheel that lands on a person type, anywhere from a baby boy to an old woman. Then they spin a third wheel that lands on the dare that they have to complete to win the money. This could be anything from kissing the person, patting their head, or kicking them in the shin! Nothing is off limits. And we film it! They have five minutes to find the right type of person and perform the selected challenge. Then the studio audience and the audience at home get to vote on whether or not the action was satifactorily performed. If it was, they get the dollar prize. At the end, the contestant with the largest amount on money amassed wins!"
"Let's put aside all the obvious issues like the PR problem with having a show that promotes violence on unsuspecting citizens, or asking audience members to vote on it, or the lawsuits that would start rolling in. What happens if for some crazy reason, you get a contestant with a conscience with refuses to trip an old man or throw a water balloon at a baby? The show is sunk."
Donald smiled broadly. "I thought of that," he said, tapping the side of his head. "If anyone refuses, they are allowed to forfeit that turn, but the other contestants are allowed to steal the challenge. If there is more than one willing opponent willing to do it, then we go into a trivia round, and the winner gets to do it. Then whoever gets to attempt the challenge can win double the original cash value!"
"So, what you're saying is that not only does the show ask contestants to inflict physical harm on others for money, but it also actively discourages normal decent human behavior?"
"In a way..."
Fran adjusted her glasses and clucked her tongue.
"I'll talk to the others," she said.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment