Guardian Journalist, Andrew Sparrow, has hit out at the Jeremy Kyle Show’s aggressive and self-righteous exploitation of guest’s varying manifestations of poverty.

The article, which uses research from Joseph Rowntree Foundation’s ‘Public Interest in Poverty Issues‘ project, considers the report’s assertions that the show is:

‘presenting the less well-off as “undeserving” objects of derision’

‘while the Jeremy Kyle Show presents itself as a programme about relationships, “it could be viewed as a rather brutal form of entertainment that is based on derision of the lower-working-class population”.’

‘A spokesman for the Jeremy Kyle show responded, “It is unfortunate that this report presents a one-dimensional view of our programme. The Jeremy Kyle Show does not seek to ‘deride’ any particular social class or portray any group of people as ‘undeserving objects’. On the contrary, it focuses on real people with real problems addressing conflict in their lives, problems which reflect genuine issues within society, and seeks to help them achieve a resolution. We do this both within the programmes and with the support of an aftercare team comprised of qualified mental health nurses and a psychotherapist.”‘

It seems interesting to me that a report that engaged experts from so many fields would come to such a conclusive, singular conclusion without it being warranted.

Does the fact that guests aren’t actively steered towards their appearance and actions prior to the the show prove the producers good intent…

and the presence of professional care following the show demonstrate that that Jeremy’s dressing down of guests, before a studio and large television audience, is a nothing more than Tough Love?

Jeremy Kyle Show ‘undermines anti-poverty efforts’, says thinktank
-Andrew Sparrow, Guardian.co.uk,Wednesday 10 September 2008