French reality TV hit stunned by 2nd death
Source: AFP |
April 3, 2013, Wednesday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
THE suicide of a doctor on a hit French reality TV show shocked viewers yesterday, with some blaming media pressure for his death while others urged restrictions on reality programs.
Thierry Costa, a physician on "Koh Lanta" - the French version of "Survivor" - killed himself on Monday in Cambodia just over a week after a candidate died on set, citing "unfair accusations" against him in the media.
"I hope the witnesses and websites that published these horrors about the Koh Lanta doctor had a bad night," @Sarah_IC said on Twitter, one of many who blamed sites and social networks for spreading misinformation about the candidate's death.
The contestant - 25-year-old Gerald Babin - died of a heart attack on the first day of filming the adventure show on the tropical island of Koh Rong on March 22, prompting French broadcaster TF1 to cancel the show's 2013 season, its 16th.
His death - the first during any French reality TV program - sparked questions about the way the show was run.
One widely used anonymous witness statement published on popular website Arret sur Images questioned Costa's handling of the candidate's death, accusing him and the production team of prioritizing the show over the victim.
"Koh Lanta" production firm Adventure Line Productions has lodged an official complaint for "slander" over the statement.
The two deaths have also sparked a wider debate in France over reality TV shows, which are hugely popular.
"Koh Lanta" - which reaches an average of 7 million people every episode - is an adventure program that sees candidates battle it out to survive on an island.
In an interview in Le Parisien newspaper, Jeremie Assous, the lawyer for Babin's family, hit out at what he said were "many labor code breaches but also breaches in hygiene and security rules" in TV reality shows. He questioned why there was just one doctor for 150 candidates and production team members working on "Koh Lanta."
Meanwhile Francoise Laborde, a journalist and member of state media regulator Conseil Superieur de l'Audiovisuel, suggested that reality shows needed to be better monitored.
"We could require them to use a psychologist" who would monitor the mental health of reality TV participants during and after filming, she said on Europe 1 radio.
Several candidates in France have in the past committed or attempted to commit suicide after their reality TV show ended. In 2011, Francois-Xavier Leuridan - who once took part in the Big Brother, voyeur-type show "Secret Story" - killed himself at age 22.
Thierry Costa, a physician on "Koh Lanta" - the French version of "Survivor" - killed himself on Monday in Cambodia just over a week after a candidate died on set, citing "unfair accusations" against him in the media.
"I hope the witnesses and websites that published these horrors about the Koh Lanta doctor had a bad night," @Sarah_IC said on Twitter, one of many who blamed sites and social networks for spreading misinformation about the candidate's death.
The contestant - 25-year-old Gerald Babin - died of a heart attack on the first day of filming the adventure show on the tropical island of Koh Rong on March 22, prompting French broadcaster TF1 to cancel the show's 2013 season, its 16th.
His death - the first during any French reality TV program - sparked questions about the way the show was run.
One widely used anonymous witness statement published on popular website Arret sur Images questioned Costa's handling of the candidate's death, accusing him and the production team of prioritizing the show over the victim.
"Koh Lanta" production firm Adventure Line Productions has lodged an official complaint for "slander" over the statement.
The two deaths have also sparked a wider debate in France over reality TV shows, which are hugely popular.
"Koh Lanta" - which reaches an average of 7 million people every episode - is an adventure program that sees candidates battle it out to survive on an island.
In an interview in Le Parisien newspaper, Jeremie Assous, the lawyer for Babin's family, hit out at what he said were "many labor code breaches but also breaches in hygiene and security rules" in TV reality shows. He questioned why there was just one doctor for 150 candidates and production team members working on "Koh Lanta."
Meanwhile Francoise Laborde, a journalist and member of state media regulator Conseil Superieur de l'Audiovisuel, suggested that reality shows needed to be better monitored.
"We could require them to use a psychologist" who would monitor the mental health of reality TV participants during and after filming, she said on Europe 1 radio.
Several candidates in France have in the past committed or attempted to commit suicide after their reality TV show ended. In 2011, Francois-Xavier Leuridan - who once took part in the Big Brother, voyeur-type show "Secret Story" - killed himself at age 22.
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