A few months ago, I got an e-mail from a David Jones at Bunim-Murray. He wanted to know if I would agree to be interviewed for a 10th Anniversary Special that they were putting together about Real World. Would I? Absolutely! I love to talk about reality television in general, and Real World specifically, so this seemed right up my alley. Plus, maybe appearing on national television would finally convince my parents that freelance writing IS a real job, even though I don't have benefits.
A few days before the interview, I started obsessing about what to wear. Hey, if I'm going to be on national television, I don't want to look like a big scuzzball. My friend Mary was extremely helpful with this search -- she went to the mall with me and patiently waited while I tried on various shirts. She was honest about the ones that weren't quite right for whatever reason. I ended up buying a shirt that I didn't even wear to the interview, but the effort she put in was appreciated.
Now it was the night before the interview. I had already told my friends and family about it, and everyone was excited. I just kept trying to rehearse in my head what I was going to say, and how I was going to say it. While trying to sleep that night, I was worried that people who have read my recaps all along would think I was some sort of sell-out, who was "consorting with the enemy." Then, I realized that I really don't care, and that despite all of the crap I give them in my recaps, I really do admire the work that B/M does. Once I got over that hurdle, I worried that I would do or say something completely stupid. Again, not a lot that I could do about it other than try not to say anything too stupid. Lying in my bed, I thought about the nature of celebrity. Was I being a hypocrite for denigrating the Real World cast members' desire for fame, while being interviewed on national television myself? Finally, I decided that it was good publicity for the site, and I wasn't hoping to get anything out of the appearance other than letting my grandma get a kick out of seeing me on television. I wasn't going to try to parlay it into a career or anything. Satisfied with that, I finally fell asleep.
Four hours later, it was time to get up. I had this great idea to document my day with photos, and had told my boyfriend to take a picture of me first thing in the morning. After four hours of sleep, I definitely did not want to get my picture taken, but I tried to be a sport. After spending the morning trying not to get freaked out about the fact that I was going to be interviewed for national television, I left for my hair appointment around 11:30 AM. I had mentioned the whole interview to my hairdresser (and I should give her a plug -- Ginny from Best & Company here in Syracuse). She volunteered to do my hair and makeup for the shoot. Since I am hair-hopeless and don't generally wear makeup, I accepted the offer gratefully. So I went, and she worked on me, and somehow managed to hide the bags under my eyes. My best friend Molly showed up as I was having my makeup done. She works about a block away from the salon, and wanted to come over and give me moral support. It was so nice of her to show up -- she's a good friend. When it was time to leave, I realized that I was starving but I didn't have time to eat much, plus I didn't want to mess up my makeup. Molly lent me the money to buy a bag of pretzels and then got down on the floor and stuck her arm in the vending machine to retrieve my errant can of Pepsi. That's the kind of friend she is.
ANYway, my interview was set for 2 PM and it was just after 1 PM. I drove up to the university and sat in my car, eating pretzels and listening to the radio. After making my way to the office of Professor Thompson, I was still about forty-five minutes early. So I paced. A lot. For about half an hour. Finally, I knocked on his office door, only to find out that they had finished early and were waiting on me, and had been leaving frantic messages on my answering machine. Oops.
I arrived on the scene, a bit out of breath, and was introduced all around. The sound guy gave me one of those microphone clip things to snake through my shirt, and a little mike pack. I sat down in the hot seat while they adjusted the lighting and background for about thirty minutes. I'm not kidding. Like I wasn't nervous enough.
Finally, the interview began. After I gave some background on myself and the site, Ted tossed out some softballs, like "Why do people watch the show?" and "Why do people want to discuss it online?" It soon became clear to me that I was "Web Girl" and that he didn't necessarily want my opinions on the show -- he wanted to know what "people on the Internet" thought. So, I ended up speaking for the entire Internet community. I hope you all don't mind.
The questions were pretty basic, and I hope that I answered them competently. I was very nervous, and I tend to make a lot of goofy faces to express my points, which I'm sure will come across on camera like I have Tourette's or something. The only sticking point was when Ted asked me to discuss some of the other Real World sites on the web, which I wasn't comfortable doing. I felt like it wasn't my place to speak for those sites, and if they wanted to know what those sites were about, maybe they could just ask them. Also, I didn't want to inadvertently badmouth any competitors, because I just think it's bad form. Ted wasn't very happy with my decision, and kept re-asking the question in different ways until he finally realized that I just wasn't going to answer it. The whole time, I kept thinking, "This is what Melissa was talking about when she said that the producers get you to say what they need to further their storyline." I wanted very badly to cave, and just start talking trash, because it would have made Ted happy, and I'm a people-pleaser. But I think I was firm. Of course, you all can judge that when you see the special.
The only thing that bothers me about the interview in retrospect is this: I think I was a little too "People of the Web, join hands, start a Love Train." Ted asked me a lot of questions about anonymity and the Internet, and if people say things they might not otherwise say. Well, of course they do. But I was concerned that the piece might turn into an "evils of the Internet" thing, so I tried to emphasize how the Internet can bring people together and help them see opposing points of view. And I might have gone a little too far that way. Oh well.
And the other big problem was that I used the word "interesting" about a million times. I did slip in the word "dichotomy" though. I just hope I don't come off as too much of a buffoon.
After the interview was over, I talked to Ted a little bit about working for Bunim-Murray. He's been with the company since the Seattle season, where he was a story editor. We discussed how the show has changed over the years, and how the cast members have become more aware of the camera. I didnt take notes, but I do remember one thing that he said very clearly in his own defense. He said that while they do cut things up and rearrange them in the editing room, they don't manufacture storylines wholesale. If you see something on the screen that seems out of place, it's because they are trying to represent emotions or instances, but don't have all the right footage. For example: during the Seattle season, while the group was in Nepal, they showed Stephen and Janet getting into a big fight, and then making up. He admitted that the make-up scene was not a result of that particular fight, but said that Stephen and Janet had a number of fights, and the editors felt that should be represented on-screen, as well as the fact that they eventually resolved their differences. The only fight footage they had was from Nepal, so that's what they used. He gave a number of other examples, but I think you get the point. I thought it was interesting to hear another point of view, anyway.
I asked Ted what the deal is with all the Space Needle shots in the Seattle season, like after a while don't they trust the viewers to understand where the season is set? He explained (as I suspected) that they have to edit the show so that the casual viewer can get just as much out of it as the dedicated viewer, and thus sometimes things are repeated. I said, "But three Space Needles per episode? It got more screen time than Rebecca!" He kind of chuckled.
When all was said and done, I wanted to get a picture of Ted and me for the record, but he turned me down. He just wasn't comfortable with it, which I respected, but I did manage to get in one last jab -- saying that it was just like how I wasn't comfortable talking about other websites. I think he got the point.
It was an interesting (see, there it is again!) and nerve-racking experience. It will be even weirder when the special airs (Ted said probably April or May) and I have to recap myself. Ooooh. Weird. I hope I'm not too mean. And I hope all the people in the forums take it easy on me!