The new documentary Anna Nicole Smith: You Don’t Know Me looks at celebrity culture, and the way it can put pressures on the celebrities themselves. And, of course, in the time since Smith’s passing in 2007, it has only become more common for everyday people to subject themselves to scrutiny, whether it’s on social media, or unscripted TV. Speaking about the documentary today on an episode of The View, host Whoopi Goldberg singled out American Idol as a flashpoint that changed the way people talk to one another, and contributed to “the downfall of society.”
The host maintains she is talking about the original run, which happened on Fox from 2002 until 2016. ABC, the network that airs The View, is the current home of a recently-rebooted American Idol, which Goldberg says is a “very different show.”
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“I think that we, as a society, love to watch stuff to judge folks. I’ve always thought that the beginning of the downfall of society was [American Idol],” Goldberg said. “Once we gave people the ability to judge other people, I think we ran amok with it, and it’s gone out of control. They invited the public to decide who that person was, and I feel once we did that, it began us in a cycle which we have not [escaped].”
Saying that people enjoy having the ability to judge one another, Goldberg also used the examples of things like the Real Housewives franchise, suggesting that shows like that let the audience feel superior to the people they’re watching.
“You have Basketball Wives, you have the Housewives of whatever, all the Bravo shows, they give you the impression that you’re doing something wrong because you’re living your life,” Goldberg said. “People watch these shows because they make them feel better.”
Created in 1997 by veteran journalist Barbara Walters, The View is a daytime talk show hosted by women — including Whoopi Goldberg, Joy Behar, Sunny Hostin, Sara Haines, Alyssa Farah Griffin and Ana Navarro — and each offers her take on the day’s news during the opening “Hot Topics” segment. Later, the ladies welcome various celebrities, who join them in a chat or perform for the audience. The program also offers tips on beauty, fashion, diet and relationships. Known for their freewheeling style, the hosts are often lampooned in late-night sketches.
