This is an interesting bit of yin yang for y'all*:

It seems that all the reasons given by Claudio Petruccioli, president of the Italian state broadcaster RAI, not to have reality programming on his channel are the exact reasons why American broadcasters want to have more reality programming:

• "unreasonable if not degrading behaviour"
• "[putting] people into environments that are both unrealistic and coercive"

Petruccioli tried unsuccessfully to keep L'Isola dei Famosi, a reality show that pits celebrities against one another on a secluded island, from coming back for a second series. The show apparently caused some controversy when one of the actors swore on live television.

RAI is paid for by a licensing fee. While the board gave the "go ahead" to the show, they did tell producers to be careful who they pick so as to avoid embarrassing moments like the one mentioned above. Once again, I can imagine such an incident would only thrust that actor further into the spotlight had it been an American program.

*By the way, "Yin Yang for Y'all" is the title of a new album I'm producing by a Chinese country western band. Look for it this summer.