I did a search, didn't find this, so don't yell at me!
Survivor's new plan in to divide the tribes up by race - 4 latinos, 4 whites, 4 asians, and 4 blacks as a way to stir up the old ratings.
Some people are terribly offended by this - I see little difference between this and dividing the tribes up by age or gender as done previously to no consternation.
thoughts?
http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-ftr-surv24.html
New 'Survivor' to divide along racial lines
August 24, 2006
NEW YORK -- The new season of ''Survivor'' will be a race among races.
At the start of the reality show's 13th edition, ''Survivor: Cook Islands,'' 20 contestants will be organized into four tribes divided along ethnic lines -- black, white, Hispanic and Asian, CBS announced Wednesday.
The tribes, as usual, will merge later in the season, which debuts Sept. 14, the network said.
Host Jeff Probst said the network was worried the racial divide might offend viewers.
''It's very risky because you're bringing up a topic that is a hot button,'' Probst said. ''There's a history of segregation you can't ignore. It is part of our history.
''For that, it's much safer to say, 'No, let's just stick with things the way they are. Let's don't be the network to rock the boat. Let's not have 'Survivor' try something new.' But the biases from home can't affect you. This is an equal-opportunity game.''
Probst said he and the ''Survivor'' producers wanted to bring more ethnic diversity to the competition.
''The truth is 80 percent of the people that apply are white,'' he said. ''And television, in general, is white. So all these criticisms were valid.''
On each episode of ''Survivor: Cook Islands,'' at least one cast member will be sent to a separate island miles away from camp, where an immunity idol will be hidden. If found, this immunity idol could save a contestant from being voted off the show.