What’s this show called … Secret Millionaire?

There are a lot of reasons why I’ve chosen specific shows to watch for my column. Most times it’s because I’m curious about a series, due either to its subject matter or the popularity that it enjoys. But sometimes, on those rare occasions, it’s something else.

Sometimes I wonder about the inexplicable nature of a show’s very existence. You know what I’m talking about: one of those “They put this on the air?” moments. And this week I experienced just that, as I waded into the confusing world of Secret Millionaire.

Apparently this is the show’s second US season, although I hadn’t realized that. It seems that the British-born show aired on FOX back in December 2008; season two began airing on ABC last week. Anyway, the show involves sending a millionaire into a poor neighborhood undercover. Once there they volunteer at various community outreach locations before revealing their true identity and handing out fat checks. Sound familiar yet?

That’s right, this is pretty much Undercover Boss but with a happier ending. Instead of corporate honchos patting themselves on the back for giving Johnny and Timmy one-time bonuses, successful people get a chance to feel good about themselves by handing out even bigger checks to organizations that serve more than themselves and their families.

Dani Johnson appeared on the premiere. The show kept on talking about how she had picked herself up off the streets and become a millionaire by starting a business out of the trunk of her car, but the only business they showed her being in was the shady business of telling other people how to succeed in business. For some reason I doubt a homeless woman would have been able to sell that product to anyone, so I wonder what got her off the street in the first place.

Regardless, under the guise of filming a documentary Dani volunteered at three organizations, including a soup kitchen, a music school for disadvantaged kids, and an organization that creates dream bedrooms for terminally ill kids. The exposure that these causes got was great, as was the fact that Dani was there to support them, first physically and then financially. There’s no question that the show is heartwarming.

But I had to wonder something: who does the show really serve? Dani spent so much time building up how wonderful all of these giving individuals were … so what does that make the person who swoops in and gives so that these angels can keep on giving? And what’s the point of having this be something that takes place in the public eye?

Beyond that I wondered what will happen to the soup kitchen when Dani’s $20,000 runs out. Will she stay in touch with them? Will she be helping them with more money, or at least helping to mobilize other donors who could make a difference? It’s great if the kitchen can feed people for another month, but what happens then? If any show needed a follow-up, it’s this one.

I also found myself trying to figure out if Secret Millionaire was better or worse than Undercover Boss. But that one’s pretty easy … while both are self-aggrandizing, Secret Millionaire has the potential to touch a greater number of people who are in need. No offense to the struggling employees at some of the companies involved with Undercover Boss, but those people are employed and cashing paychecks; Secret Millionaire’s flock is a lot worse off than that.

Still, I wonder what it says about us that we tune into either one….

Clacked by Aryeh S.
on Mar 14, 2011 @ 15:30 EST5EDT