The Trump administration is not considering a reality show in which immigrants compete for citizenship, according to the Homeland Security chief, despite statements to the contrary by a department spokeswoman.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem told a Senate committee May 20 that she and her leadership team “have no knowledge” of a reality show, which was first reported by The Daily Mail.
“There may have been something submitted somewhere along the line, because there are proposals pitched to the department, but me and my executive team had no knowledge of the reality show,” Noem told the Senate’s Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs committee.
“There are no plans whatsoever to do a reality show,” she added.
On May 16, Homeland Security spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin waffled on whether there had been conversations about the idea.
“This is completely false. Daily Mail’s ‘reporting’ is an affront to journalism. Secretary Noem has not ‘backed’ nor is even aware of the pitch of any scripted or reality show,” McLaughlin said in a statement emailed to USA TODAY.
However, McLaughlin told the Wall Street Journal the department was considering collaborating on a TV show that would pit immigrants against one another to get their U.S. citizenship applications fast-tracked. The pitch reportedly came from the people who made “Duck Dynasty.”
The Daily Mail quoted McLaughlin, a Trump appointee and assistant DHS secretary, as supportive of the project.
“I think it’s a good idea,” it quoted McLaughlin as saying.
Noem told senators the reports about such a collaboration were “inaccurate and false.”
Josh Meyer contributed.