GSN plays the prejudice game

With racial and social prejudice getting a lot of ink and airtime in recent weeks, thanks to Don Imus, Sanjaya Malakar and Virginia Tech (not to mention Borat’s scheduled appearance on Idol Gives Back), the Game Show Network has found itself on the crest of topicality with a new game show that turns people’s prejudices can lead to cash.

Well, Without Prejudice? (“?” included) isn’t exactly new.

It’s a copy of a British show of the same name that’s been seen here on BBC America. And GSN actually gave it a greenlight before that Virginia Tech guy went off, Sanjaya was voted off or Imus spouted off. Even so, now that it’s set for a July 19th premiere, the show’s producer says the network is “brave” for giving it a go.
That’s because other networks backed away from the show because they didn’t think audiences would want to see people voted off because of the way they looked or acted. (Yeah, read that line again.)

As on the Limey version, the GSN show will have five average people judging five other average people based on how they come across to strangers. Contestants have a shot at winning $25,000, and are eliminated over a series of rounds in which the judges learn increasingly more about them and their views. The judges will question the players on hot button issues like abortion and gay marriage– everything except how they’d spend the money.

Not surprisingly, the producers expect the American contestants to be more vocal and outspoken than the Brits, who tend to be more reserved.

Dr. Robi Ludwig, a psychotherapist who hosts TLC’s One Week to Save Your Marriage will host. The show will air on Tuesdays.

(And speaking of timing: last night’s Sopranos just happened to feature a violent, emotionally disturbed young Asian man and references to campus violence.)

–Tabloid Baby