I was recently notified that a group of ministers had planned to stage a demonstration at the local CBS affiliate protesting the airing of the reality television series "Survivor."
It seems this pop culture phenomenon is no longer the first item of new business at the next-day water cooler meetings. Thus, low ratings along with the ongoing critique that "Survivor," which opens its new season today, lacked diversity have prompted producers to come up with an interesting twist -- divide up the contestants into teams based on their ethnic origins.
The 20 players will initially be divided into four groups -- Hispanic, African American, Asian American and Caucasian. The groups will merge at some point later in the game.
This latest version of "Survivor," which is nothing more than a perverted form of social Darwinism, is showing all of the symptoms of a program on its last legs. By protesting this lunacy, however, the ministers become unwitting accomplices of convenience with the show's producers, each aiding and abetting the other's short-term desires for relevance.
The network's motivations are simple -- ratings, which ultimately translates into money. How might a show regain some of its lost ratings while addressing the need to be more diverse? From the network's perspective, a competition based on race makes sense.
With 75 percent of the cast non-white, the diversity question is solved and, if American history has taught us anything, we are all curious, if not honest, about race.
The use of race for our viewing pleasure is second only to sex and violence. And when you have all three, you have a blockbuster hit.
Since D.W. Griffith's movie "Birth of a Nation" in 1915, we have collectively used race to titillate our voyeuristic sensibilities. From Westerns that negatively portrayed Native Americans to World War II dramas that fueled stereotypes of the Japanese, America has been entertained by race. Even the O.J. Simpson trial, which was one of the original reality television series, used race as a featured attraction.
So it should come as no surprise that in order to survive, "Survivor" reached back for a new and fresh idea. But the fact that the ministers feel this is worthy of protest becomes the puzzling issue.
All they will accomplish, in addition to this column, is to provide an unworthy subject more attention than it deserves. But sadly, they need "Survivor" as much as "Survivor" needs them.
It is much easier to protest scripted reality television than to confront the unscripted version. The unscripted reality is happening all over this country. Moreover, it has all the makings of a blockbuster hit -- sex, race and violence.
AIDS disproportionately impacts the African-American community. Urban violence, which again is impacting African Americans at an alarming rate, also deserves constant attention.
So not to lack diversity, we must not forget the cruel way America treats those unlucky to be on the wrong side of the have/have-not divide. Katrina made this reality painfully obvious.
Instead of protesting a meaningless television series, wouldn't a minister's time be better spent raising our conscience level about poverty? According to the Economic Policy Institute, the overall poverty level is increasing while the median income for the non-elderly is decreasing.
The number of uninsured Americans is at an all-time high -- 47 million people have no health coverage. It has been roughly 3,285 days since low-income workers received a federal minimum wage increase while during that same period, members of Congress have managed to find an additional $30,000 in salary for themselves.
Recent Commerce Department data shows in the first half of 2006 the share of national income that went to wages and salaries was at the lowest level on record, with data dating back to 1929. Corporate profits, in contrast, were at the highest level since 1950. We are clearly headed in the wrong direction morally and economically.
And if these ministers are unable to confront those realities, why not watch "Survivor"? If nothing else, the commercials on the scripted reality television series are certain to be better than the unscripted one.
Byron Williams is an Oakland pastor and syndicated columnist.