A few weeks back, we blogged about a new reality show, “True Beauty,” premiering this year on ABC.  Supposedly, the show would feature the usual collection of contestants who, while they thought they were being judged on their external good looks, were actually being judged on their “inner beauty.” Well, we’ve seen the premiere episode and it wasn’t exactly what we were hoping for.  We applaud the producers, including Tyra Banks, for bringing the issue of inner beauty to the fore, but we had something different in mind.  And since we try to be positive on this blog, we’re going to offer our constructive criticisms on how “True Beauty” could become a truer test of bona fide Inner Beauty.

• Make the setting more natural. Right now, the show’s setup is pretty typical: take a bunch of people, stick them in a house, and let personal conflict erupt.  Instead, we’d love to see the show be more natural and unforced.  Follow the contestants around in their personal lives with hidden cameras and audio to see how they interact with others.  Inner beauty is about self-esteem and seeing the beauty in other people and the world around you.  Do the contestants treat themselves well or engage in damaging self-talk?  Do they treat others with compassion and respect?  Do they maintain a positive frame of mind?  Those are questions you can’t answer in an artificial setting.
• Expand the palette of people. This might not be able to happen until next season, but we’d love to see people who aren’t all great looking be on the show.  The contestants right now are all varying degrees of gorgeous, and that doesn’t reflect reality.  It sends the message that inner beauty only matters if you also have outer beauty, and that’s not a healthy message to send.  Add a plus-sized woman, a geekier guy and maybe even a disabled man or woman to the cast next year and we think viewers will relate much better.
• Take more time. The first contestant was expelled from the program after one week and after one not-so-beautiful act (failing to hold a door for someone).  Even though it follows the the “Survivor” format of “knock ‘em down one at a time,” that doesn’t seem fair.  Inner beauty is a matter of thoughts, attitudes and actions over a long period, not one isolated incident.  Heck, even the most inwardly gorgeous of us is inconsiderate or mean-spirited from time to time.  Again, we know this violates the “who’s going to be booted next” ethos of reality TV, but it would give each person a fairer shake.

We’re not TV producers, and we haven’t thought these ideas through completely, but we think that in general the result would be a “True Beauty” that was more true to its name: a test of the genuine inner beauty of a group of people.  It would also send a more positive message to the audience: that real inner beauty is its own reward, even if you don’t win a spot on People’s Most Beautiful list.

Stay beautiful,

Debi & Eva