This is one of the few reality shows that I would watch faithfully every week. I don't think you can get any more real than having actors portraying different types of negative interactions in public places, thus shocking or in some cases even outraging unsuspecting bystanders. It's a social experiment, pretty much. It wasn't just done for entertainment purposes - they really wanted the audience at home to think. To literally ask themselves 'what would I do?' If you were out in a shopping mall, and overheard/saw a woman berating her daughter for not being able to fit the clothes because she isn't thin enough; a kid getting bullied in an ice cream shop by other kids for stuttering when they're placing their order; a man being verbally aggressive towards a woman who appears to be his romantic partner in a grocery store. Would you intervene in any of those situations, or all three? Or do you take the route of minding your business, no matter what you observe? Honestly, back when I was watching the show, I was a teenager at the time, and I found myself thinking I would speak up in pretty much all of their scenarios. Fast forward a little over a decade later - with the crazy times we're living in, I would feel uneasy becoming involved in a disagreement or awkward exchange between strangers. People are so easily offended nowadays. You really don't know how someone is going to react to your unsolicited two cents. I work as a counselor on a crisis line, so I'm totally comfortable with people telling me about their personal life. But unless they come to me for help, I don't think it's my place to put myself in the middle of their family or relationship problems. Now I will say, it takes a lot of courage to stand up for people in situations that involve discrimination, such as racism or homophobia. Also if vulnerable groups are being tormented, like the homeless, disabled, and children. If I saw a child getting bullied, either by an adult or another child, I would say something. On the other hand, say for example, I was in a restaurant. A man and woman are chatting. Their table is within earshot of mine. I watch him look at his phone and type a message. I hear him tell her he's going out to the car to check on something and would be back. I get up to leave ten minutes since the time he got up, and once I'm outside, I see him sitting in the passenger side of another woman's car, smiling and laughing with her - there's no way I would go back into the restaurant and ask the first woman "was that your husband or boyfriend?" (she answers), and then I'm like "oh, okay, well, just wanted to tell you that he's being unfaithful. He's outside in a car with the other female now." Nahhhhh, I would leave that one alone. If the woman was my friend I might consider telling her (even then, that can be really hard news to break to someone). In some cases, it is best to mind your business. With everything considered, this show really wasn't that bad. It looks like it's still coming on, since there's a dash after 2009, but I haven't seen it. If you do manage to catch it, it's worth giving a look.
