Stress TV?

US: Is it your dream to take part in a reality TV show? If so, you might want to think again. According to some former participants, working conditions on programmes like Hell’s Kitchen are, well, hellish.

Jen Yemola, a candidate on the US version of the British cooking show in 2007, says that, before production, “they locked me in a hotel for three or four days”. Yemola, a pastry chef from Pennsylvania, told the International Herald Tribune: “They took all my books, my CDs, my phone, any newspapers. I was allowed to leave the room only with an escort. It was like I was in prison.”

Hell’s Kitchen stars British chef Gordon Ramsay and a changing team of young cooks. Working hours are long and Ramsay is famous for his blunt style and frequent use of obscenities. Because there is no union for contestants of this and other reality shows, they have been compared to sweatshops. Isolation, sleeplessness and alcohol are often used to provoke contestants.

"They locked me in a hotel for three or four days," says contestant Jen Yemola.

Mark Andrejevic, an associate professor of communications studies at the University of Iowa, has written a book about the phenomenon. “The bread and butter of reality television is to get people into a state where they are tired, stressed and emotionally vulnerable,” Andrejevic says.

Dan Cutforth and Jane Lipsitz, producers of the modelling show Project Runway , deny that participants are badly treated. “We always give contestants the best conditions we can,” they said in a written statement. “Our budgets are less than half what a similar network show would have, and that means very long days for cast and crew, but our contestants are fed at least every six hours, and there are always snacks and water available.”

Despite the stress, some contestants remain positive about the experience. Andrew Bonito, who appeared on Hell’s Kitchen in 2005, is now a manager at a New York restaurant. Bonito says being on the show “definitely contributed to my success. And I got an opportunity to be part of popular culture.”