One alternative reality television show at a time! It provides participants with the opportunity to earn U.S. citizenship through a fun, interactive series of challenges based on American culture. While The Daily Mail originally floated the proposal, launching an international firestorm of petitioning and panting. Now the whole country is fighting at the intersection between entertainment and immigration policy.
Rob Worsoff, the creative genius behind this brilliant project. He is a Canadian-born producer best known for producing the blockbuster reality series Duck Dynasty. Worsoff’s pitch includes various challenges that revolve around quintessentially American themes, such as assembling and launching rockets in a NASA-themed contest, competing in a gold-rush scenario in San Francisco, and participating in an auto-assembly-line race in Detroit.
Though the idea has sparked excitement among outsiders, the notion has caused unease inside the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) as well. The department has vehemently disputed the allegations. They even go so far as to claim that Kristi Noem, the current Secretary of Homeland Security, wasn’t in on this television dry run. From Reason OPINION Tired of being scolded for their immigration enforcement efforts, governors pass the buck on deportation—not that they’re not happy to supervise them.
On behalf of the DHS department, Tricia McLaughlin, a department spokesperson emphasized the department’s aggressive calendar. Every year, they get pitched hundreds of conceptions for new television programs. She highlighted the intent behind the proposed show, stating, “We need to revive patriotism and civic duty in this country, and we’re happy to review out-of-the-box pitches. This pitch has not received approval or rejection by staff.”
Worsoff has been upfront about the desire for the show not to look like dystopian stories such as The Hunger Games. He stated, “This isn’t The Hunger Games for immigrants. This is not: ‘Hey, if you lose, we are shipping you out on a boat out of the country.’”
The grand prize-winning participant will be sworn in as a new U.S. citizen. Many consider this concept a brilliant vehicle to combine entertainment with the life and death business of U.S. immigration policy. This proposal comes amid the backdrop of Donald Trump’s long-desired immigration crackdown. It does ask some fundamental questions about what such a bold move could really say about the future.
While debates over the feasibility of this new reality TV concept continue, it remains unclear if the DHS will proceed with Worsoff’s idea and what effect it could have on public perceptions of immigration.