CBS' 'The Activist' to be retooled from competitive series into documentary special after backlash.
Social media users, bloggers and opinion writers had laid into the competitive nature of a show meant to celebrate and encourage activism, among other concerns.In a joint statement, CBS and producing partners Global Citizen and Live Nation announced the format switch, saying:"'The Activist' was designed to show a wide audience the passion, long hours, and ingenuity that activists put into changing the world, hopefully inspiring others to do the same.
The joint statement concludes by saying:"Activists and community leaders around the world work every day, often without fanfare, to advance protections for people, communities, and our planet. We hope that by showcasing their work we will inspire more people to become more involved in addressing the world's most pressing issues. We look forward to highlighting the mission and lives of each of these incredible people.
The concept for"The Activist" had been announced in May but, with no celebrity names attached, drew almost no notice at the time. The info about the show hadn't changed when the hosts were announced last week, but this time, it got attention — the wrong kind, with the competitive aspect provoking ire and accusations that the use of social media metrics in judging the winners amounted to a celebration of"click-tivism.
The now-abandoned format for the series had six activists representing three causes — health, education and environment — completing challenges to raise awareness about those issues during the initial four episodes. For the fifth and final episode, three of the six activists were to have been chosen, one representing each area, to go to the G20 summit in Rome at the end of October and meet with world leaders to personally press their causes.
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