Survivor and Race

Survivor: Only appealing to the white race?/h3] CBS network's leading reality-television show "Survivor" will begin airing its 13th season, "Cook Islands," on Thursday, September 14. The hit show had, throughout its six-year, 12-season run, always raced to a top 10 spot on the Nielsen Ratings. Last season, however, the program slid three spots and finished in eleventh place.

I'm no television producer, but falling ratings must mean it's time for a change, right? Well, that's exactly what the show's execs have planned.

Producers had been hearing a fair amount of criticism regarding their casts: the message was, "Survivor is not ethnically [read "racially"] diverse enough." Now, Survivor" host Jeff Probst says the main reason for the show's largely white complexion is a dearth of applicants of other races. "Most [reportedly about 80%] of the people who apply are white," says Probst. "That's just a fact." Apparently, a diverse Survivor, at least as it pertains to race, was considered unattainable.

Survivor: Casting Efforts to Expand and Include More Races

In any event, Survivor execs have decided to respond. In a New York Times article, Mr. Burnett--Survivor producer--says the show reached out to social and church groups to bring in more applicants from different races. The results, according to Burnett, have been positive. “We got so many good people we expanded the number of contestants to 20 instead of the usual 16.”

Great. So they achieve an exciting, diverse cast, which will (hopefully) ensure a broader, larger audience and appeal to other races. But the story doesn't end here. No, this time around, the amazing group of 20 (meet the new survivors) has been sorted into four Survivor groups...by race. The four Survivor teams are separated by race/ethnicity (that Latin category just clouds the whole issue): white, black, Asian, and (ethnic) Latino (whether racially Indian, White, Asian, Black or a mix of the four). They will compete in weekly challenges against each other, and the losing group will have to vote out a member of its own team.

Survivor: Competing and Voting on the Basis of Race

Survivor host Jeff Probst says the idea of dividing the contestants by race originally did not sit well with network executives (Is that so?), who feared this would offend viewers (You think?): "It's very risky because you're bringing up a topic that is a hot button (No kidding). There's a history of segregation you can't ignore,” he says. (Oh, do teach us more.)

Chron.com reports that Survivor host Jeff Probst urged naysayers of the new, racially divided edition of the reality show to give it time before putting it down. "A lot of people who have never seen Survivor have absolutely no idea what they're condemning and using this as a platform," Probst told reporters Thursday. No idea what they're condemning? Now, I'm not exactly condemning, but I think it's just in bad taste.

Not surprisingly, after the new tribe divisions were announced, New York City officials began urging CBS to pull the show. Saying that the setup will promote divisiveness, several officials called on CBS and Survivor execs to reconsider its plans. "The idea of having a battle of the races is preposterous," John Liu, a New York City councilman from Queens, said Thursday. "How could anybody be so desperate for ratings?"

CBS doesn't deny the questionable nature of their decision: they've issued a statement saying they "fully recognize the controversial nature of this format, but have full confidence in the producers and their ability to produce the program in a responsible manner." They even acknowledge that Survivor is a program that is "no stranger to controversy and has always answered its critics on the screen."

So what's the big deal anyway?

Article Continues on Page 2: Why the controversy?