XPost: ucb.politics.progressive, chi.general, alt.hollywood   
   XPost: ca.politics   
   From: bigots@gladd.org   
      
   It was only a matter of time.   
      
   Any cable network that butters its bread with reality TV, from   
   A&E to MTV to TLC, is going to end up courting controversy at   
   some point. Whether it's a show's star getting arrested, or the   
   married couple at the heart of a series getting divorced, or an   
   entire show shutting down because advertisers decide they want   
   nothing to do with rampant hypocrisy anymore...   
      
   Real people have real problems. And even if real life never   
   visibly intervenes onscreen, once they're TV stars, their lives   
   are open to 24/7 scrutiny, even when the cameras aren't rolling.   
      
   And HGTV—the cheerful aunt of sunny, escapist networks that   
   serves as a safe haven for so many amid a cable lineup jam-   
   packed with bad news and intense, dream-haunting drama—has   
   proved to be no exception.   
      
   The producers of Love It or List It were sued in April by a   
   couple who claimed the show left them with a "disastrous"   
   renovation. Staged to Perfection's Meridith Baer was sued by a   
   dissatisfied client in September who claimed that the quality of   
   the furniture he ended up with didn't match the high fee Baer   
   charged for her services. (Baer's company said it stood by the   
   work.)   
      
   The stars of Kitchen Cousins filed for bankruptcy protection   
   last year after an arbitration went against them over a botched   
   reno in New Jersey.   
      
   But the issues aren't limited to problems with the product,   
   which have always been a fly in the ointment when it comes to   
   just how real these glorious home-   
   buying/selling/renovating/decorating shows on any network are.   
      
   The latest cloud to roll in is the news that Tarek and Christina   
   El Moussa, the married stars of Flip or Flop, have separated—and   
   that more than six months ago, Christina called the cops after   
   Tarek stuffed a gun in his backpack and charged into the woods   
   near their home in Chino Hills, Calif.   
      
   Per the Orange County Sheriff's Department incident report,   
   Christina told deputies that Tarek didn't threaten her or   
   indicate in any way that he wanted to hurt himself or anyone   
   else; Tarek said that he needed to "blow off some steam" and   
   took the gun as protection against rattlesnakes and mountain   
   lions. Still, authorities chose to temporarily remove five   
   firearms that were in the house for safe-keeping; Tarek   
   voluntarily agreed.   
      
   But back to the breakup after seven years of marriage. The real   
   estate agents and parents of daughter Taylor and son Brayden   
   seemed like the perfect couple. However, even though the show   
   may have been a god-send in one way (a Flip or Flop viewer who   
   was a nurse emailed producers about a lump she noticed in   
   Tarek's neck, and it turned out to be thyroid cancer), the El   
   Moussas were ultimately just as vulnerable to the strains of   
   starring on a successful TV show as any other couple who   
   suffered a similar fate.   
      
   "Like many couples, we have had challenges in our marriage,"   
   they said in a joint statement Monday. "We had an unfortunate   
   misunderstanding about six months ago and the police were called   
   to our house in an abundance of caution. There was no violence   
   and no charges were filed.   
      
   "We chose to get counseling to sort out our relationship.   
   Together, we have decided to separate while we reevaluate the   
   future of our marriage. During this process, we are committed to   
   our kids and being the best parents we can be. We will continue   
   to work through this process civilly and cooperatively, and plan   
   to continue our professional life together."   
      
   So they could get back together.   
      
   But a source told E! News today that there had been rumors of   
   trouble in their marriage for a few months now, and they needed   
   to be kept away from each other during filming breaks because   
   they were bickering too much.   
      
   HGTV said in a statement to E! News, "We admire and appreciated   
   Tarek and Christina's great work on Flip or Flop. When it comes   
   to matters related to their own family, we respect their privacy   
   and honor any decision that works best for them and their   
   children. HGTV is currently airing episodes of Flip or Flop and   
   the series will continue production as scheduled."   
      
   Perish the thought and slap my typing fingers. But the Fixer   
   Upper stars, who like the El Moussas debuted on HGTV in 2013 but   
   whose brand has really exploded over the past year, have also   
   gotten a recent taste of the consequences of becoming famous   
   just for being your charming ol' self.   
      
   Chip and Joanna, who live and shoot their show in Waco, Texas   
   (the couple's days at Baylor University are a frequent topic of   
   conversation), recently came under fire when Buzzfeed took pains   
   to point out that they have associated with a church whose   
   evangelical pastor preaches against same-sex marriage and is a   
   proponent of conversion therapy.   
      
   The report didn't claim that the Gaineses, who are Christian,   
   agreed with the pastor or shared those discriminatory values,   
   but you can bet that plenty of people were stricken to find out   
   that the shiplap-loving duo associated with such a person.   
   Critics demanded that the Gaineses speak out and clarify their   
   beliefs.   
      
   HGTV—which is owned by Scripps Networks Interactive and counts   
   Food Network and Cooking Channel among its sister stations—has   
   already proved itself to at least care about what the talent   
   themselves get up to. The network sent twins Jason and David   
   Benham packing in 2014 ahead of the premiere of their show Flip   
   It Forward after Right Wing Watch unearthed past anti-gay and   
   anti-abortion comments made by David, who claimed HGTV knew what   
   he had said all along.   
      
   "Our show had nothing to do with anything of the things that are   
   now the controversy," David said on Nightline in May 2014. "But   
   I also understand that HGTV when they called us and shut the   
   show down, they said they had to make a business decision."   
      
   However, when network execs questioned the brothers when David's   
   comments came to light during the vetting process, David   
   recalled, "We explained it to them and we gave the proper   
   context for my statements. And they looked behind our eyes and   
   said, 'They don't have any hate in their hearts for anyone, so   
   we are going to give them a show.' And then they made us an   
   offer."   
      
   Added Jason: "We let them know that we love Jesus, that we love   
   people and we love real estate and we are good at what we do.   
   And they saw that there was no hatred inside of us, for any   
   people, any individual, any human being, and they knew we would   
   be a great fit for the network."   
      
   HGTV didn't comment at the time beyond confirming the   
   cancellation. But perhaps the network would have said more if   
   that had happened today.   
      
   http://www.eonline.com/news/815269/hgtv-isn-t-immune-from-the-   
   reality-tv-curse-as-flip-or-flop-fixer-upper-court-controversy   
      
   America, it's time to kick those faggots to the curb and shut   
   them up.   
        
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)