Ronald Grover

Who Wants To Be A Debtor?

The Depression had its marathon dance competitions. For today’s hard-luck contests, cue up Howard Schultz, creator of Extreme Makeover and other reality shows. Schultz says he has two TV networks interested in Desperate Measures, a show he’s pitching as Who Wants to Be a Millionaire meets Fear Factor. The idea: Contestants with up to $300,000 in debt answer questions to win a prize—having the show pay off their creditors. If debtors get stuck, friends can help by, say, eating bugs. Schultz is confident there’s an audience for this. In the current crisis, he says, revealing the extent of your debt has “become as commonplace as talking about what you do for a living.”