PARIS: The suicide of a doctor on a hit French reality TV show sparked shock yesterday, with some blaming media pressure for his death while others urged restrictions on reality programmes.
Thierry Costa, a physician on Koh Lanta — the French version of Survivor — killed himself on Monday in Cambodia just over a week after a candidate died on set, citing “unfair accusations” against him in the media.
“I hope the witnesses and websites that published these horrors about the Koh Lanta doctor had a bad night,” @Sarah_IC said on Twitter, one of many who blamed sites and social networks for spreading misinformation about the candidate’s death.
The contestant — 25-year-old Gerald Babin — died of a heart attack on the first day of filming the adventure show on the tropical island of Koh Rong on March 22, prompting French broadcaster TF1 to axe the show’s 2013 season, its 16th.
His death — the first during any French reality TV programme — sparked questions about the way the show was run.
One widely used anonymous witness statement published on popular website Arret sur Images questioned Costa’s handling of the candidate’s death, accusing him and the production team of prioritising the show over the victim. Koh Lanta production firm Adventure Line Productions (ALP) has lodged an official complaint for “slander” over the statement.
The two deaths have also sparked a wider debate in France over reality TV shows, which are hugely popular.
Afp
