Do Your Children Love Kid Nation?

Do you have young children that have been watching the CBS show "Kid Nation"? There are some interesting things you may want to know before you encourage your son or daughter to audition for this show.

First a little background. "Kid Nation" is a new show produced and aired by CBS. The show takes place in a New Mexico "ghost town" near Santa Fe. The children are allowed little or no contact with their parents for the entire 40 days. They are also required to live in somewhat questionable conditions. There have even been accusations that the show may have violated state labor laws and child housing licensing requirements.

The parents, as well as the children were required to sign a very specific contract which basically gave CBS and the shows producers to portray the children however they see fit and to basically have the children do and say whatever they wanted. There is a severe confidentiality agreement in the contract as well. Breaking the confidentiality agreement will cost you $5 million dollars in penalties. CBS and its affiliates also have the rights to the children's life stories as stated in the contract. The contract does however, allow for the children to exit the production at any time but upon leaving they forfeit the $5000.00 promised for completing the series. Some of the children are even awarded $20,000.00 for being voted the best by the town council. If the children decide to leave the show they forfeit payment of any type and are still bound by the confidentiality agreement. CBS has the right to withhold the stipend and prizes until after the series airs to ensure the confidentiality agreement is not broken.

CBS has responded to the issues saying "the series was filmed responsible and within all applicable laws in the state of New Mexico at the time of the production." CBS also replied by letting the public know that even though some of the children did receive injuries, that they were treated immediately and by professionals.

The series leads you to believe that the children are left alone in the "ghost town" for entire 40 days. The only interaction with an adult that you see on TV is with the shows host, Jonathan Karsh. This is not true since there are camera operators and audio engineers all over the town as well as producers that interview the children. You can see these interviews weekly when "Kid Nation" airs.

During the 40 days the children are divided into four groups. There is a council person on each group. The Councilmen are the town leaders. The idea is that the children keep the town running for the entire 40 days without failing. There are many trials the children go through. They seem to have done pretty well according to the episodes that have aired so far. If you miss an episode, CBS has made them available to download on the website too.

According to reports, CBS has already started interviewing for the next season of "Kid Nation". Make sure you get the facts and do your research before encouraging your child to interview for the show.