Tackling Childhood Obesity...On TV?

The three kids and trainers on The Biggest Loser

Many of us are familiar with the rising problem of childhood obesity in the United States. Organizations and political leaders are taking charge of this issue in a variety of ways. For example, First Lady Michelle Obama with the Let's Move Campaign and the NFL with their Play 60 initiative. Both of these campaigns, and many others, strive to put an end to childhood obesity by encouraging children to be active and eat healthy. American's spotlight on obesity does not end with these campaigns. 

In 2004, NBC debuted a show called The Biggest Loser. In the show, obese contestants compete to lose the highest percentage of their body weight (when compared to their initial). In other words, the show is supposed to act as a competition to become healthy. This reality show has been criticized as promoting unrealistic rates of weight loss. The contestants live in a ranch for the duration of the show and their primary focus is on losing weight and learning to eat healthier. In the real world, a person could not commit that long of a period of time (and energy) for weight loss. 

For the next season starting in January, there will be a new aspect to the show. Besides the return of one of the most well known trainers on the show, Jillian Michaels, three teens from the ages of 13-17 will be featured. One article talks about the addition of the new members by saying, "With childhood obesity at an all-time high, jeopardizing the health of kids and future generations, The Biggest Loser is committed to fighting this epidemic by featuring children to serve as ambassadors for change who can inspire kids all over the country to get healthy"(NBC). The children will "serve as ambassadors" because instead of living in the ranch and doing weekly weigh-ins, they can continue their lives at home but will be able to lose weight and in the process will inspire others. Also, NBC is trying to reach a wider and more diverse audience with the teens. I think that this is a great idea but it makes me wonder if it is really the best for kids struggling with their weight to be put in the national spotlight. NBC has adressed these concerns by saying that these kids are already being bullied about their weight and this show would serve as a support system for them and their families. Do you think that it is alright to have children participate in this show? What other issues could arise from this?

Shortage of U.S. Pilots

The airport has become a much less enjoyable place to be in recent years because of higher security measures and also unavoidable weather delays. Another problem is soon to be affecting air travel in the United States that most people are unaware of. I was reading an article that was talking about the shortage of pilots in U.S. airlines. The article explained that one of the reasons is because the requirements for being a pilot are starting to become stricter. For example, Federal Mandates will be put into effect next year that require pilots to have at least 1,500 hours of flying experience which is six times more than previously needed. I think that this is in theory is a great idea that would ensure that pilots really know how to fly but that time is a huge investment! I remember how long it felt to get fifty hours in order to  be eligible for my drivers license so 1,500 hours would feel like a lifetime. Therefore, Aviation Schools will have to spend more money and wait a longer time to send out new pilots. This is an issue because according to the Wall Street Journal, "more than half of American pilots are over age 50"and many of them will be retiring soon. Furthermore, studies project that Airlines will need to hire nearly 50,000 pilots in the next ten years in order to keep up with the wave of pilots that will be retiring.

When first reading the article, I did not understand why there are not enough pilots. I remembered hearing about cuts in the pay of pilots earlier this year and realized that this could make the job less appealing to prospective pilots. Because of these pay cuts, some American pilots are moving overseas to fly planes for other foreign airlines that pay better. Also, the job is rather demanding because the pilot is away from home most of the time. Why else do you think that there is a shortage of pilots? How would this affect the availability of flights in the coming years? Do you think that the media is making this problem seem bigger than it really is?