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American Morning

Tell Me About It: Reality TV

Aired January 09, 2003 - 06:40   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Gentlemen, Trista,...

TRISTA RHEN, "THE BACHELORETTE": Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... it's your final rose tonight.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Do reality shows really make for a great relationship? Can you find true love on television?

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: These are the questions of the day.

We've got Carolyn Hax on the phone with us to give us advice. She writes a column called "Tell Me About It" three times a week in the "Washington Post."

Good morning -- Carolyn.

CAROLYN HAX, COLUMNIST, "WASHINGTON POST": Morning.

COSTELLO: Hey, I love your column.

HAX: Oh, thank you.

COSTELLO: It's awesome.

So, can you find true love on TV?

HAX: Well, you know I've been saying since these shows started coming on, these people are all perfect for each other.

(LAUGHTER)

COSTELLO: Why, because they're all slightly just off?

HAX: Yes -- well, yes. I mean I think that these shows are about greed and a grab for attention and they should all -- they should all live happily ever after.

VAUSE: But have these relationships got any hope? I mean will they actually last?

HAX: Oh of course not. I mean...

(LAUGHTER)

VAUSE: Tell us what you really think.

(LAUGHTER)

HAX: Well the thing is, most relationships don't last. And so you give one a start like this and it will -- but of course the funny thing is anything can happen.

COSTELLO: That's true, anything can happen.

VAUSE: Well that's why people watch.

COSTELLO: Yes, exactly. And you know we talked to two radio DJs from West Palm Beach, Florida earlier on DAYBREAK, and they really believe that this woman can find true love on this television show. They really believe that. Does the younger generation really believe that?

HAX: Well I was going to say well good for them, but they have that kind of -- yes, they have that kind of hope in mankind or in whoever, in whatever. I don't know, I just -- I just think -- I mean I think people watch these shows because they have some hope that things will turn out well. I mean I think if you were to go out and talk to the younger generation that you refer to and see what they thought of all this, I think they are just watching it because it's why you slow down for a car wreck.

VAUSE: Yes, it's a train wreck.

HAX: Yes.

VAUSE: It's a train wreck in progress spread out over 12 episodes.

HAX: Yes. I mean they're watching people humiliate themselves. And in fact they're upping the ante of humiliation on a lot of these.

COSTELLO: Like "Joe Millionaire."

HAX: Exactly. You know it's OK we're going to -- we're going to -- we're going to stop pretending that we are -- we're watching this to see people get together...

COSTELLO: You know...

HAX: ... and we're going to admit that we're watching them to -- watching them humiliate themselves.

COSTELLO: You know, Carolyn, it always amazes me how many women agree to humiliate themselves on national television -- why?

VAUSE: And now this time, how many men.

COSTELLO: Yes, well that's true.

HAX: I think that -- I think the cosmos have some mysteries and this is one of them. I don't know why people are doing this.

VAUSE: But tell us about the relationship though, there's some talk that you know "The Bachelor" was OK because it was a guy asking a woman to marry him, but a woman asking a guy.

COSTELLO: And picking between 25 guys you know.

VAUSE: There's a little bit of controversy about that.

HAX: Really? Oh I just -- I think -- I think that you're going to have the awfulness of a man picking among all these woman who are basically prostituting themselves, then you might as well be fair and let a woman choose among all these men who are prostituting themselves. I think that equality has to be served here.

COSTELLO: And it definitely is being served.

Hey, let's get serious for a moment and tell us the best way that we can meet a potential mate.

HAX: Live. Just live your normal life and don't stay home and watch people make fools of themselves every night because you'll just -- you'll just never get out there. No, I think the -- I think the best way to meet people is in the course of your regular life, doing the things you love to do. And if you don't have things that you love to do that puts you around other people, then maybe you've got to get a little more creative. But I think this whole concept that they have on the shows, and the shows is just -- are just a distillation of I think a really bad idea and that is that you can go out and hunt for a mate. I don't think you can do that.

COSTELLO: Oh.

HAX: I think you just have to -- you have to run into them in a way that puts people with like interests together naturally and so that you can get to know people naturally instead of staring across them.

VAUSE: Yes. You know a really good place to meet people is the ATM machine. I've known a lot of people who have got married after meeting at the ATM machine.

COSTELLO: You've got to be kidding?

VAUSE: No, I'm serious, the ATM machine.

HAX: See, it's a common interest.

VAUSE: Yes.

COSTELLO: Just watch how much money they take out and if they take out a lot, you go hmmm. Just kidding.

Thank you, Carolyn, it was a lot of fun.

HAX: You're welcome. COSTELLO: We appreciate it.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired January 9, 2003 - 06:40   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Gentlemen, Trista,...

TRISTA RHEN, "THE BACHELORETTE": Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... it's your final rose tonight.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Do reality shows really make for a great relationship? Can you find true love on television?

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: These are the questions of the day.

We've got Carolyn Hax on the phone with us to give us advice. She writes a column called "Tell Me About It" three times a week in the "Washington Post."

Good morning -- Carolyn.

CAROLYN HAX, COLUMNIST, "WASHINGTON POST": Morning.

COSTELLO: Hey, I love your column.

HAX: Oh, thank you.

COSTELLO: It's awesome.

So, can you find true love on TV?

HAX: Well, you know I've been saying since these shows started coming on, these people are all perfect for each other.

(LAUGHTER)

COSTELLO: Why, because they're all slightly just off?

HAX: Yes -- well, yes. I mean I think that these shows are about greed and a grab for attention and they should all -- they should all live happily ever after.

VAUSE: But have these relationships got any hope? I mean will they actually last?

HAX: Oh of course not. I mean...

(LAUGHTER)

VAUSE: Tell us what you really think.

(LAUGHTER)

HAX: Well the thing is, most relationships don't last. And so you give one a start like this and it will -- but of course the funny thing is anything can happen.

COSTELLO: That's true, anything can happen.

VAUSE: Well that's why people watch.

COSTELLO: Yes, exactly. And you know we talked to two radio DJs from West Palm Beach, Florida earlier on DAYBREAK, and they really believe that this woman can find true love on this television show. They really believe that. Does the younger generation really believe that?

HAX: Well I was going to say well good for them, but they have that kind of -- yes, they have that kind of hope in mankind or in whoever, in whatever. I don't know, I just -- I just think -- I mean I think people watch these shows because they have some hope that things will turn out well. I mean I think if you were to go out and talk to the younger generation that you refer to and see what they thought of all this, I think they are just watching it because it's why you slow down for a car wreck.

VAUSE: Yes, it's a train wreck.

HAX: Yes.

VAUSE: It's a train wreck in progress spread out over 12 episodes.

HAX: Yes. I mean they're watching people humiliate themselves. And in fact they're upping the ante of humiliation on a lot of these.

COSTELLO: Like "Joe Millionaire."

HAX: Exactly. You know it's OK we're going to -- we're going to -- we're going to stop pretending that we are -- we're watching this to see people get together...

COSTELLO: You know...

HAX: ... and we're going to admit that we're watching them to -- watching them humiliate themselves.

COSTELLO: You know, Carolyn, it always amazes me how many women agree to humiliate themselves on national television -- why?

VAUSE: And now this time, how many men.

COSTELLO: Yes, well that's true.

HAX: I think that -- I think the cosmos have some mysteries and this is one of them. I don't know why people are doing this.

VAUSE: But tell us about the relationship though, there's some talk that you know "The Bachelor" was OK because it was a guy asking a woman to marry him, but a woman asking a guy.

COSTELLO: And picking between 25 guys you know.

VAUSE: There's a little bit of controversy about that.

HAX: Really? Oh I just -- I think -- I think that you're going to have the awfulness of a man picking among all these woman who are basically prostituting themselves, then you might as well be fair and let a woman choose among all these men who are prostituting themselves. I think that equality has to be served here.

COSTELLO: And it definitely is being served.

Hey, let's get serious for a moment and tell us the best way that we can meet a potential mate.

HAX: Live. Just live your normal life and don't stay home and watch people make fools of themselves every night because you'll just -- you'll just never get out there. No, I think the -- I think the best way to meet people is in the course of your regular life, doing the things you love to do. And if you don't have things that you love to do that puts you around other people, then maybe you've got to get a little more creative. But I think this whole concept that they have on the shows, and the shows is just -- are just a distillation of I think a really bad idea and that is that you can go out and hunt for a mate. I don't think you can do that.

COSTELLO: Oh.

HAX: I think you just have to -- you have to run into them in a way that puts people with like interests together naturally and so that you can get to know people naturally instead of staring across them.

VAUSE: Yes. You know a really good place to meet people is the ATM machine. I've known a lot of people who have got married after meeting at the ATM machine.

COSTELLO: You've got to be kidding?

VAUSE: No, I'm serious, the ATM machine.

HAX: See, it's a common interest.

VAUSE: Yes.

COSTELLO: Just watch how much money they take out and if they take out a lot, you go hmmm. Just kidding.

Thank you, Carolyn, it was a lot of fun.

HAX: You're welcome. COSTELLO: We appreciate it.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com