to think X Factor exploitation and humiliation has reached a new low

[Servalan]

So tonight on the X Factor there was a woman in her 50s humiliating herself - likening herself to Madonna and murdering a Lady Gaga song

OK, fair dos, she's put herself up for it, anyone entering the competition could be setting themselves up for ridicule - it's been the format of the audition shows from day one.

That aside, I am horrified at the decision by whatever producer was responsible to film her 2 teenage children in the wings and to make entertainment out of their crippling mortification. The woman's daughter looked like she was about to burst into tears.

I would bet anything that they are going to be getting a shit time at school next week - and who knows for how long :(. I think the show has crossed a line here and there is absolutely no justification for humiliating children for the sake of entertainment

It was awful - I kept thinking there would be a great rousing moment and kids would laugh/feel proud. Shameful and shoddy. Am very glad my children weren't watching with me.

mosschops give over. Compassion doesn't have to be show towards one group of people. Just because someones situation is worse doesn't mean you cant feel sympathy for ones better off but still in a crappy situation. I hate examples like that.

There's kids dying yes we are aware of that, but does that mean we can't feel sorry for those being bullied? Or potentially going to be bullied?

televised bullying? they dont actually drag people out of tesco and force them onto the show you know!

squeaky televised bullying is a bit much but it's defo exploitation. It's also apparent some of the people have mental health issues.

At one time I'd have laughed at said its their own faults, but this series has done my head in. That girl, although she was a bitch and made a show of herself, was dead upset because she'd been told to sing pink and basically had the piss taken out of her. That's not what they go on for.

Maybe their teachers will have seen it and will sort out the school side of things with good-humour & shrivel-balls-stare. They seemed like such gentle children too.

Mosschops, in my town a teenage girl killed herself last weekend, allegedly because of bullying at school. Don't even try to be sanctimonious about it.

I switched it off after that.
The looks on the kids' faces were the only genuine thing on the show. Filming them was so gratuitous and mean. I remember being that age and can't even fathom the embarrassment they're feeling.
When the three of them waked out afterwards and the Mother was withering on with some nonsense it was clear that they're probably sadly used to her eccentricity. They seemed in despair.
They're not starving, granted, and many kids are worse off but they sure as hell didn't need that.
The x factor stinks. Really stinks.

*wittering. Not withering. Although she was doing that as well.

I don't understand why people moan, but still watch it. Watching it boosts the ratings, the higher the ratings, the more it continues.

I haven't watched the X Factor since it was Pop Stars? Or Pop Idol? Can't remember. Same with Big Brother, I watched the first, and haven't bothered since. A load of crap they both are.

The x factor stinks. Really stinks.

Indeed.

It's the biggest load of contrived, pseudo-sentimental bollocks seen on TV.

Why do they always have to have camera shots of the judges with their fake 'awww' faces while someone's cute child is stage-managed into shot when they finish their audition?

I half watched it tonight and I've decided that was the very last time I'll watch any of it. We only ever have it on to laugh at the comedy auditions anyway and stop watching once they have chosen the group who will go on to murder other people's songs until one of them is chosen to be famous for a few weeks before everyone wakes up to the fact they're actually talentless no-hopers.

It's utter shite designed to appeal to the very limited intelligence of the Facebook generation.

Kaboooom you're right and Shelleyboobs I've turned it off for good now too.
I knew it was going down the tubes but that did it for me.

It wasn't X-factor who made the decision to take the two kids out of school and take them to the audition though, was it? It was their mother.

It was her young daughters face I felt so sorry for her infact i couldn't watch poor kids are probably back at school next week I can imagine the stick they will get, she was a loon

OP Totally agree with you. I watched this with my DCs who are also 16 and 14 and the first thing I said was, That poor boy's starting Year 10 on Monday.

Bad decision by the producers.

Each act shown is either presented to be a laughing stock or one for the judges to praise to the skies. Anything inbetween has no chance. My friend's daughter and her two friends reached boot camp last year. They suspected they had no chance of winning because they were never filmed other than on stage. When the series was shown,they never appeared at all.

We all felt the same - often do but like to see the few nice bits. Camera really didn't have to focus on the poor kids.

the best answer if you think the xfactor has overstepped the mark is to stop watching it,

My daughters friend never even got to the judges he is a really good singer and performer but apparently they asked for a story he didnt have 1

At the risk of repeating myself - it's not actually compulsory to take your kids to an audition. The mother chose to take them, not the producers.

At the risk of repeating myself - it's not actually compulsory to take your kids to an audition. The mother chose to take them, not the producers.

I thought she was a complete twat for taking them Its not the xfactors fault she is an insensitive show off

But the producers decided to air the recording showing the children. All they care about is the ratings, and that is exactly what they are getting.

But why is that a surprise Kabooom? It's a producer's job to care about ratings, it's a parent's job to care about their children. They shouldn't have been put in that situation in the first place.

Agreed, the mother did choose to take her kids - she is clearly deluded and a loon and needs to take some responsibility

but there are guidelines supposed to stop children being exploited on television - and I believe the producers exploited these children by using their mortification as entertainment. It was the programme makers who had the final say in what was shown, and I can't believe there was such a shortage of footage that they needed to show this.

I agree with voting with your feet btw - I turned off straight afterwards and will not be watching again.

mosschops, personally, I think if the children are now at risk of being bullied at school (not be mention being shouted at in the street and other things that could happen on the back of this) it is worthy of concern. I was verbally bullied through school - I am now 41 years old, crippled with anxiety, suffering from OCD and I attribute a fair amount of this to what happened to me at school

It is Xfactor it isn't supposed to be an informative documentary caring about contestants its all about ratings, TBH i think it has had its day and maybe folk need to stop watching

No, they don't drag them out of tescos squeakytoy. What they do is encourage some deluded soul who misguidedly thinks they can sing to get up and make a total fool of themselves, rip them to shreds in the name of entertainment and then send them back to their lives without a thought to the misery they've created.

Televised bullying.