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CBS and Global Citizen have enlisted Usher, Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Julianne Hough to host their new reality competition series, The Activist. Led by Usher, Jonas and Hough, the series will star six activists participating in competitions pertaining to healthcare, education and environmental sustainability.
"One thing seems more clear than ever: Planet Earth is a singular village, demanding if not relying on individual engagement. From the Global Citizen movement comes an awe-inspiring look at what can come of it. The Activist pairs advocates from the worlds of health, education, and the environment with famous figures in a series of competitions that’ll take the winners -- and their ideas for seismic world change -- to the G20 Summit in Italy," the series description reads.
CBS has found success with reality shows like Big Brother, The Amazing Race, Love Island and Survivor, but viewers don't appear to be excited about this series. Some potential viewers were turned off by the series because they felt it was commodifying the work of activists around the world.
"This is very bad. You have to be inhumane to try to commercialize people's struggles," Choose Yourself Executive Director Judicaelle Irakoze tweeted.
"We really are on the worst timeline," Washington Post Columnist Karen Nicole Attiah added.
Despite pushback from viewers, CBS feels that the series will be "ground-breaking" and "inspire viewers" to create change in their own communities.
“Combining philanthropy and entertainment, The Activist is a ground-breaking series poised to inspire viewers,” Jack Sussman of CBS told Deadline.
“We’re thrilled to have Usher, Priyanka, and Julianne as part of the series, guiding our CBS audience through the journeys of passionate changemakers from around the world.”
Deadline reports that the five-week series will debut on October 22 at 8:00 p.m. on CBS.
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