ONE WEEK FROM NOW
An Open Letter to the "Kid Nation" Kids
From AMC

On Thursday, September 20th, the world is going to change for the 40 of you young people who worked so hard on "Kid Nation." Nothing in your life has prepared you for what is to come, so I thought we'd take a few minutes of your time to help make sense of your new surroundings.

First things first: You are not alone. You are not unique. You are not the first kids to experience television fame. And you will not be the first to discover that it is not all that it's cracked up to be.

In fact, cracked up is a fine term for what is about to happen. People around you will change. Count on it. Oh, at first it will be little things you think you can ignore, but pretty soon you'll become an expert in recognizing the signs. Fingers will point. People will whisper. The attitude of teachers, family and pals will change in small but important ways. Remember this always. Most of the time the big changes are not in you, but in them. The weirdest thing is that they'll accuse you of being the one who has changed.

You're different now, all of you. It's a shame that you have not had any training or professional support to deal with "the day after blues." I know some of you…almost half, in fact…have said you want to be performers. Well, now you are…and most of you will soon find that without the strength of years of training, of trial and error and all that other stuff that goes with finding out just how good you are, the fame is going to be like a coat that's too large. Welcome to the deep end of the pool.

Let's talk about not talking. This Confidentiality Agreement is a pain in the neck. People are going to ask you a lot of questions. It's only natural…for them. I guess the only safe response is to say, "My parents will be sued for five million dollars if I talk about "Kid Nation." Sorry."

I can't begin to explain how unfair this situation is for you. Just think how many times you had a sad expression on your face and your parents or friends said, "You want to talk about it?"

In a very short time you will discover that you are being invited to parties and events you never heard of. Worse, you will also find that those things you used to be invited to have somehow disappeared. You will be alone more than ever.

Like I said, it's not you who have changed, but the people around you. It will be tough to explain this to your parents…or even yourself…but you'll have to remember the dilemma your parents have; they signed you up for "Kid Nation."

Your immediate allies will be the other kids who were with you in New Mexico. Stay in touch with them. They're going to have some inner doubts, too, especially if some of the video hurts their feelings or causes them embarrassment. Phone calls are safer than emails, but you know that.

You older kids are going to have a more complicated path, if only because there are more people in your life…more classes and more classmates. Perhaps the toughest question you will face is how you feel about those people who have come forward to talk about your working conditions, one or two parents who now know the truth, and advocates like me in particular. Since you can't talk about the reality you dealt with in New Mexico let me give you a short cut. There are bad people in this world. Lies have become the common language of the entertainment business. Grown-ups took advantage of you, Big Time.

When it gets too complicated and you think your head is going to explode…and about a month from now that's how you'll feel, believe me…remember that you have more friends than you know.

You will have immediate access to a lot of people who also grew up in the fishbowl. Some of us are union officials. We're on your side, always. If things get rough, use the email link to our web master. Your secrets are safe with us.

Finally, keep this in mind, too. The day you reach your eighteenth birthday this can all be addressed in the proper manner. I know that for the youngest of you the next ten years might be hard. But there is an exit strategy. As new and strange as this seems to you now, other people have gone through this process. Read the following words carefully:

   As I was watching the Bronco game here in Colorado on this Sunday night I saw the promo for the new CBS reality show called "Kid Nation". I was immediately called to action, first as an emotional response because I was drawn to feelings of helplessness and then tears at the possible exploitation of these children. I was a cast member on a reality show called "XXXXXXXX", a xxxxxxxxxx production that aired on NBC. I was cast along side my husband in 2005. The experience was emotionally devastating to me and it has taken several years and lots of doctor bills to reach a point of recovery.
   So as you might imagine, the idea of putting children through that type of public scrutiny and exploitation is unacceptable. How can I get involved? There is no doubt that I will be involved in this movement. Something needs to be done to stop this. The network will try to make themselves look responsible but anyone who has ever been on a reality show, such as myself, knows that their implicit motive is entertainment and making money. These children will be edited out of context and it will not be in the interest of their emotional well-being. I am sick about this. Please let me know. What can I do?

A Minor Consideration
Thursday, September 13, 2007