Leave it to Showtime to come up with something more interesting than the presidential contest between the Squatter and John Effin' Kerry. The US pay-television channel is presenting a new reality show, "American Candidate", which offers contestants the opportunity to win $200 thousand dollars and a national media platform from which to speak their piece.
From the "AC" Web site:
AMERICAN CANDIDATE will attempt to identify one individual who has the qualifications and qualities to be President of the United States. This summer, AMERICAN CANDIDATE will debut with 12 contestants from all walks of life. Over the course of 10 weeks, those 12 will face-off against each other in a series of challenges designed to test their presidential mettle and to show viewers what really goes on in the making of a presidential candidate. Week-by-week, the original pool of candidates will be winnowed down. The final episode will be a showdown between the remaining two candidates, and one person will emerge victorious — the "American Candidate."
The show doesn't begin airing until August, but shooting is under way (as is editing, hmmm). I don't want to give anything away, of course, but this news can't wait: One of the candidates is author-lecturer-activist-journalist Keith Boykin.
AC's site says it aims for diversity in its candidate offerings: Keith is all that and more — he's an openly gay man who identifies as African-American and espouses progressive yet fiscally sound beliefs. He worked in the Clinton White House and these days, his favorite pol is John McCain. (Verrry interesting.) His plans for office are to create millions of new jobs for Americans, to institute universal health-care coverage, and to end the Iraqi occupation so that the US can fight what Keith calls "the real war on terror." Learn more about his campaign at his "AC" candidate homepage.
And yeah, I'll be partisan, as Keith and I have crossed paths before and I like him quite a lot: Should "AC" hit your town, SUPPORT KEITH BOYKIN FOR "AMERICAN CANDIDATE"! He is a very good guy — smart, hardworking, committed, experienced, loyal, and filled with integrity. And hell, it's a TV show, not a real campaign, so it doesn't hurt that he is easy on the eyes.
Go Keith, go!
Note to New Yorkers: Keith's from NYC and he'll need your help this week. Start spreading the news!
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