Why Usher, Priyanka Chopra and Julianne Hough’s Reality series, the activist gets dragged on Twitter

A reality TV contest pitting activists against each other to see which of their causes is the last to stand is now a reality… and people are not exactly thrilled with it.

On Thursday, Deadline reported that Usher, Priyanka Chopra and Julianne Hough have agreed to co-host “The Activist,” where they will each be paired with six Champions of Change to come up with new and exciting ideas to promote the health, education and environment.

As with any slick-worthy competitive program – like “Survivor” or “American Idol” – CBS’s five-week streamer will pit contestants against each other in a series of one-on-one challenges.

“Activists compete in challenges to promote their causes, their success measured by online engagement, social action and contribution from hosts,” reported Deadline. “All three teams have one ultimate goal: to create impactful movements that amplify their message, incite action and move them forward to the G20 summit in Rome, Italy. There, they will meet with world leaders in the hope of securing funding and awareness for their causes. The team that receives the greatest engagement is celebrated as the overall winner of the final, which will also include musical performances by some of the world’s most passionate artists. “

Hugh Evans, CEO and co-founder of Global Citizen, which produces the show, said he hopes the series “will inspire real change” – while Jack Sussman, executive vice president of CBS, said that by “combining philanthropy and entertainment”, the is “a revolutionary series ready to inspire viewers”.

However, when the Film Updates Twitter account posted about the series, all it inspired was a backlash.

Twitter had a field day with the announcement, as the masses on social media quickly questioned the concept.

“They turned activism… into a game show? wrote one puzzled follower, while another shared: “The competition for donors is already fierce. Why not compete with donors to see who can give more?”

“It’s perverse,” said a user. “Pitting activists against each other while exploiting their activism for rating and money is a marginal dystopia of the 1970s.”

Others had lighter takes, as one Twitter user shared: “If there hadn’t been any licensing rights issues, they could just air an episode of this show on Black Mirror without no accompanying comments. “

And one of them posted a photo of a toddler crying with a gun and the caption, “me slaughtering the animals at the shelter because my activist tweets didn’t get enough of it. ‘commitment.”

Read on for more hilarious reactions, below.