Television Review: The Simple Life
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What Parents Should Know
Parents need to know that stars
Paris
Hilton and
Nicole
Richie can be self-absorbed, snobby, and rude. Their
behavior and attitudes are atrocious. Yet the portrayal of
their actions in the fish-out-of-water scenarios they're placed
in is so over the top that these socialites seem like
caricatures.
Families can talk about the behavior of these young ladies. Is
it appropriate to treat people the way they do? Do they play up
their behavior for the cameras? They cheat, lie, and steal, yet
the show has been successful. Are Paris and Nicole role models?
Do teens think that these women are truly this vapid, or is all
clever editing (and possibly even some scripting)?
In a reversal of The Beverly Hillbillies, reality show THE SIMPLE LIFE follows socialites Paris Hilton (heir to the Hilton fortune) and Nicole Richie (daughter of singer Lionel Richie) as they find themselves living the country life with a hosts family in tiny Altus, Arkansas.
On one level, teens will love seeing two spoiled girls being forced to do ordinary things such as going to the grocery store, sharing a bathroom with others, being interns, or taking care of someone's house. Their exaggerated reactions to everything from pig's feet to a pickup truck are funny.
But parents might want to talk with their kids about the way all of the characters are portrayed here. Are the show's producers combating stereotypes or furthering them? For example, the host family laughed when Nicole said she heard that people in the South hang out at Wal-Mart for fun (which appeared to dispel a myth about rural life), but producers cued Deliverance-type banjo music every time the family was shown working on their farm (which promoted the "country hick" idea). Bottom line: This show may be a guilty pleasure for older teens and adults, but unless you want your younger kids imitating the socialites' bratty behavior, you're better off avoiding The Simple Life.
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