YES, most of these women honestly thought and were told by the director, a former Greek himself, that it would fall in line with shows like "TRUE LIFE" and other documentary-type shows. Anyone who has seen "True Life" knows that it does have redeeming qualities and is definitely a step away from shows like The Real World. - The frats and sororities who did activities with them were not allowed by nationals to have letters shown.
- As far as having little control over what goes on, lawyers were involved with the signing and reviewing of contracts, but the ultimate control lies within the network. Even with the most flawless contract, do you really think that anyone but MTV has control over how they are represented? It all comes down to trust; trust that the director is well-intentioned and that their values could shine through any manipulative editing job.
- I know that Sigma's Spring recruit was definitely atypical because of the filming crew's presence. I've also heard some pretty compelling accounts of unethical recruiting (solely on the producers' part), but until I see hard evidence I consider them just that: rumors.
[I encourage everyone interested to check out the Sigma website at
sigmaaepi.com and be sure to read their statement on why they chose to do the show] BTW,
Great post, SERENITY! (see Serenity's post above)