Throughout the brouhaha over CBS' latest sicko reality show, "Kid Nation," one thought has stuck in my craw -- this is a sham. As much as people fret and/or salivate over the prospect of a colony of kids left to fend for themselves, what we have here is the very opposite: It's a colony of kids surrounded by producers, writers, and TV honchos. Far from being unscripted, their whole life is manipulated -- they're carefully selected, put into groups, and compete for fancy prizes.

Now I've stumbled upon this review by Bloomberg's Dave Shiflett, who makes the point nicely:

(O)ne quickly senses that this is a big puppet show, with the strings being pulled by guidance counselors, social workers, homeroom teachers and other destroyers of youthful exuberance....

The idea that this is an adult-free zone never really gets off the ground. Besides Jonathan Karsh, a camp-counselor type who steers the youngsters in the ways of group-think, there are many other representatives of adult land.

Indeed, in response to charges that the kids weren't properly supervised, CBS noted, ``What was extraordinary about `Kid Nation' was the behind-the-scenes support structure, which included on-site paramedics, a pediatrician, an animal-safety expert and a child psychologist, not to mention a roster of producers assigned to monitor the kids' behavior.'' ...

There is a bit of cooked-up drama. ``Don't get in my face,'' one kid warned, while another complained that a tough guy ``was trying to break me down hard.'' Sweat not, young man. At the first sign of a clenched fist an adult will fly from the hayloft and issue a timeout.

The kids in the series know they won't starve or perish in a drought, and if they get sick they'll be helicoptered to a hospital. Failure has no consequences, though there is a very real reward for exemplary behavior: A star made of real gold and worth $20,000 is bestowed on one kid per episode.

How real can you get?

This ain't no real-life "Lord of the Flies." It's just a bunch of kids being manipulated and having their heads screwed with for the benefit of adult viewers.

And that, arguably, is even worse.