Space Cadets - cruel and humilating joke?

For you guys in the UK, unless you've been in the dungeon for the past month or so, you've heard of the new show called Space Cadets.

For you who havent, here is the link explaining what show is about http://www.channel4.com/entertainment/tv/microsites/S/spacecadets/about/index.html

Basically, the team of entertainers are gonna trick a group of people to make them believe they will be trained to go space in an Russian Star City near Moscow, when in fact they will never leave the UK soil, let alone go into space.

They will have an intense training and be made believe they are a part of real space mission.

Do you think this is rather cruel and humiliating, even for a practical joke?
These people have been selected purposefully as the people most likely to be tricked into believing into anything, and those people genuanly believe they will be trained and sent off into space, as the first members of public to do so.
Is this not going little too far in the name of entertainment?

I am struggling to comprehend how they even got the ethical aproval to do this.
How would you feel if you were humiliated, like those people are going to be after they find out they have been tricked, in front of a whole nation of people?

What are your thoughts?

of course it's cruel and humilating thats the point...

I haven't watched any of it because I don't really like reality TV.

The thing is with us Brits IMO we take very well to practical jokes, there have been loads of shows that have specifically prayed on members of the public for laughs. You've Been Framed springs to mind here, they made woman believe that a alien spaceship had landed in her garden.

I think that the British public will like this show and will watch it for however long it is on for. Personally I haven't been watching it.

They'll have to give them a big bung at the end, just like those poor guys who appeared on "There's something about Miriam" (or whatever that show was called). A large cheque usually makes people feel better about being made to look a fool.

I guess everything has a price - even dignity.

Im sure they had to sign contract, but still. I dont understand where they got the ethical approval from?

Things which are done in the name of entertainment would never be allowed to be done in the name of research or science.

I think their going too far even if it is for entertainment.

I'll reserve judgement until I see the contestants.

Sometimes it's fun watching bad things happen to horrible people.

Originally posted by mechmoggy
They'll have to give them a big bung at the end, just like those poor guys who appeared on "There's something about Miriam" (or whatever that show was called). A large cheque usually makes people feel better about being made to look a fool.

ohh yeah big pay off for them most probably ✅

they'll see the funny side eventually

Anyone that willingly takes part in reality television deserves everything they get.

Originally posted by lil bitchiness
For you guys in the UK, unless you've been in the dungeon for the past month or so, you've heard of the new show called Space Cadets.

For you who havent, here is the link explaining what show is about http://www.channel4.com/entertainment/tv/microsites/S/spacecadets/about/index.html

Basically, the team of entertainers are gonna trick a group of people to make them believe they will be trained to go space in an Russian Star City near Moscow, when in fact they will never leave the UK soil, let alone go into space.

They will have an intense training and be made believe they are a part of real space mission.

Do you think this is rather cruel and humiliating, even for a practical joke?
These people have been selected purposefully as the people most likely to be tricked into believing into anything, and those people genuanly believe they will be trained and sent off into space, as the first members of public to do so.
Is this not going little too far in the name of entertainment?

I am struggling to comprehend how they even got the ethical aproval to do this.
How would you feel if you were humiliated, like those people are going to be after they find out they have been tricked, in front of a whole nation of people?

What are your thoughts?

It is somewhat amusing but also very mean and I would never want to be on the receiving end of a show like that.

This is just more proof at how stupid reality tv is.

Originally posted by lil bitchiness
For you guys in the UK, unless you've been in the dungeon for the past month or so, you've heard of the new show called Space Cadets.

For you who havent, here is the link explaining what show is about http://www.channel4.com/entertainment/tv/microsites/S/spacecadets/about/index.html

Basically, the team of entertainers are gonna trick a group of people to make them believe they will be trained to go space in an Russian Star City near Moscow, when in fact they will never leave the UK soil, let alone go into space.

They will have an intense training and be made believe they are a part of real space mission.

Do you think this is rather cruel and humiliating, even for a practical joke?
These people have been selected purposefully as the people most likely to be tricked into believing into anything, and those people genuanly believe they will be trained and sent off into space, as the first members of public to do so.
Is this not going little too far in the name of entertainment?

I am struggling to comprehend how they even got the ethical aproval to do this.
How would you feel if you were humiliated, like those people are going to be after they find out they have been tricked, in front of a whole nation of people?

What are your thoughts?

But that's why it will sell. How soon until we get a show that's like Extreme Makeover without the surgery?

I can see it now, the 'ugly duckling' is put under anesthesia for a few minutes and wakes up with his or her face completely bandaged. A week later, he or she is allowed to look at his or her 'new' face...

And the audience cheers. (Wait, I meant 'jeers'.)

They truly do deserve it. The only tragedy is that the redemptive irony of the programme will be lost on the makers, who will then go on to make a show where a women (young, attractive) has to date 3 men, two of whom are murderers. Will she choose correctly? We don't know!

It's hardly confidence tricks on elderly people. It's willing idiots who want to be on tv.

Deserve everything and more.

Originally posted by Victor Von Doom
They truly do deserve it. The only tragedy is that the redemptive irony of the programme will be lost on the makers, who will then go on to make a show where a women (young, attractive) has to date 3 men, two of whom are murderers. Will she choose correctly? We don't know!

It's hardly confidence tricks on elderly people. It's willing idiots who want to be on tv.

Deserve everything and more.

Originally posted by FeceMan
I don't think that these people should be considered "willing idiots" for wanting to go into space.

It's not for wanting to go into space, it's for believing this will happen on a tv show.

Reality tv is the biggest tragedy of our age, and I have nothing but amazing contempt for it. Our generation is brainless enough.

To add to that, these are probably people who just have some space fascination, not necessarily people who genuinely know the supposed in's and out's of what it takes to go into space.

Otherwise they probably would know, as Vic said, that it isn't happening on a TV show.

The only thing worse than reality TV are those who watch it and take it seriously.

-AC

Originally posted by lil bitchiness
I am struggling to comprehend how they even got the ethical aproval to do this.

True. It seems illegal to me somehow.... can we legaly lie about what is being offered to you ?

Wow... sometimes I feel that I already know everything human stupidity, but that brings me to a higher degree of comprehension of the word "stupidity". It is almost like a spiritual experience.

Depends on the fact if the competitors are informed about camera's recording their moves or being left unaware.
Giving the hint that camera's are around should make the brighter ones go 'hmm' and have their doubts about the whole shebang in this age of reality-TV. And even the dumb-asses who take the cam's for granted should have a certain amount of awareness that there must be folks around more suitable for a space-mission, and go 'hmmm' eventually.
Guessing it's a candid thing then, my opinion is that is a very low and disrespectful way to gain viewers, this goes beyond faking someone's car getting stolen for a little laugh.
And mind, TV producers have tons of experience and many experts to help fooling even the best of us. Making people give their best and show their worst for the sake of money by holding some lure in front of them clarifies that people are just peons for them, moving them in whatever absurd situation and not giving a shit when one breaks down. And all that just for money, so these wise-asses can fill up their sports-cars for another year. Yuk!

Originally posted by Atlantis001
True. It seems illegal to me somehow.... can we legaly lie about what is being offered to you ?

Wow... sometimes I feel that I already know everything human stupidity, but that brings me to a higher degree of comprehension of the word "stupidity". It is almost like a spiritual experience.

It's not illegal. If there was contractual weight behind the offer, maybe. Obviously there wasn't, because the contestants didn't give anything in return.

No matter, if I were to be caught in a show like that, going 200% on it and finding out it was a hoax after all; all the firemen in the world couldn't put out the fire I'd start on that building.

Originally posted by Pandemoniac
Depends on the fact if the competitors are informed about camera's recording their moves or being left unaware.
Giving the hint that camera's are around should make the brighter ones go 'hmm' and have their doubts about the whole shebang in this age of reality-TV. And even the dumb-asses who take the cam's for granted should have a certain amount of awareness that there must be folks around more suitable for a space-mission, and go 'hmmm' eventually.
Guessing it's a candid thing then, my opinion is that is a very low and disrespectful way to gain viewers, this goes beyond faking someone's car getting stolen for a little laugh.
And mind, TV producers have tons of experience and many experts to help fooling even the best of us. Making people give their best and show their worst for the sake of money by holding some lure in front of them clarifies that people are just peons for them, moving them in whatever absurd situation and not giving a shit when one breaks down. And all that just for money, so these wise-asses can fill up their sports-cars for another year. Yuk!

I agree that the programme makers are, lacking a better term, c*nts (censorship is so reliable. You just don't know what's going on under your nose).

The problem is that the media merely tends to hold a mirror up to nature, as it were. They don't continually hawk products that are unwanted, just as surely as they will try to sell anything that is.