The Candidate (TV)

The Candidate
Created by Tolo TV network
Presented by Jawed Jurat
Country of origin Afghanistan
No. of seasons 1
Release
Original network Tolo TV network
Original release 2009

The Candidate is an 2009 Afghan reality TV show that mirrors the Afghan election. Six youths under 22 try to convince the audience that they should stay on the show. The audience votes on their favourite candidate through text messaging.

Premise

The Candidate had its first season in 2009.[1] The show, hosted by Jawed Jurat, featured 6 youth, 22 years or younger, discussing political positions and then voted on by viewers until one was elected at the end of the season.[1][2] The season finale was just weeks before the hotly contested 2009 presidential election.[1][2] The show received tens of thousands of SMS text message votes.[2] Tolo chief Jahid Mohseni said that the concept of the show was about how to educate the public on choosing a political candidate. Mohseni told TIME magazine, "One of the critical problems ... it's all about who the person is, his family or his ethnicity. It's never about policy and it is never about the outcome you want. So we thought a program based on a competition about policies could change that."[1] Contestants are given a monthly allowance of $1,300 to spend on real-world campaigning — posters, rallies and travel to other provinces in an effort to gather more "votes".[1]

Production

The show was produced by the Tolo TV network.[1][2] Part of its funding and support came from the CEPPS agreement, a cooperative agreement supporting the election and civil society process in Afghanistan.[3]

Contestants

The following contestants were among the six on the 2009 season:[1][2]

Controversy

The first contestant to voted off the show was Mujiburahman Poya instead of quietly accepting the texting results he stormed off the stage. Back stage cameras captured Poya hinting about how the show's results were rigged, "After this, it is clear that I must move ahead by force, not by talent," he shouted. "Afghanistan is not ready for democracy. If people want it, there is hope, but now no one is thinking about their future. They are not thinking about who they choose, so that is why they suffer."[1]

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Baker, Aryn (15 July 2009). "Afghanistan's TV 'Election': Better Than the Real Thing". time. Retrieved December 28, 2009.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Gopal, Anand (15 August 2009). "Young Candidates Spar in Mock Afghan Election". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved December 28, 2009.
  3. ↑ Fact Sheet: Support Increased Electoral Participation in Afghanistan (Report). USAID Afghanistan. October 2009.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 3/13/2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.