There's one for student debt: https://www.trutv.com/shows/paid-off-with-michael-torpey/ind...

Yes! It was supposed to be over the top satire with a comical tone, but then it just ended up depressing me because it started to feel far too realistic...

FWIW, it's not just you. And it's not new.

"We are living in interesting times; in fact, they're so interesting that it is not currently possible to write near-future SF." -- Charlie Stross, Sep 2008

http://www.antipope.org/charlie/blog-static/2008/09/avalanch...

Well Black mirror process this is untrue. I don't think I could be a writer for that show though, just watching it makes me sick.

It reminds me a bit "Running Man" by Stephen King. I think King probably had the better idea by having the audience be able to punish wrongdoers instead of helping the downtrodden.

If you could add some good mob rule hurt-the-bad-guys to your mix, it could be a hit. And that's messed up.

I think the reason a reality show for funding healthcare is so plausible is that it would be filling a gap left by a corrupt and failing system. I don't think anyone believes that there is a gap in the administration of law enforcement and punishment in the US.

> I don't think anyone believes that there is a gap in the administration of law enforcement and punishment in the US.

Take it up a level; I think quite a lot of people believe there's a serious gap in the oversight of law enforcement agencies in the US. Where's the public accountability?

So - a reality show that follows police units, and lets the audience vote on which officers should be promoted, sacked, or jailed....

I haven't seen an internet discussion yet where, whenever a gap is identified, somebody doesn't say something like "How can these people get away with this! There should be a law..." or something similar.

So sure. Find the gap, tell the sad story, then follow enforcement folks as they find the people responsible -- with the audience voting for whomever that is and what the punishment should be.

In the end the weak and vulnerable are rewarded, the evildoers punished. It's basically every Hollywood movie you've ever seen except the audience gets to vote on the outcome and real people are involved -- the ultimate in reality TV.