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8BThe Statement // Wednesday, September 29 2010
PERSONALSTATEMENT
REALITY RECONSIDERED
BY SASHA WANG
I was studying abroad in Spain last
semester when I received a Face-
book message from a CBS producer.
He told me he loved the sex blog I had
started six months prior and wanted
me to star in an episode of a docu-
mentary series that would appear on
The CW network about "classy, fabu-
lous and educated women who seem
to have interesting quirks." And my
favorite subject would be the focal
point of the first episode: sex.
The TV pilot seemed pretty rel-
vant to the double life I was leading:
ordinary college student vs. sex blog-
ger with a following of 15,000 unique
fans per month. I considered this TV
appearance a way to gain national
publicity for my alternative feminist
views about sex, while at the same
time showing that I was also just a
normal college student. It also seemed
like a good way to promote the web-
site, from which I was receiving ad
revenue.
Because I would only be appearing
on one-third of a 60-minute cable pro-
gram, I figured even if I weren't happy
with how I was portrayed it would
quickly become old news. But I could
never have predicted the effect the
STEM CELLS
From Page 5B
Despite the potential economic and
medical benefits, the original oppo-
nents of Proposal 2 and new embry-
onic stem cell challengers continue to
fight for greater research restrictions.
"Unfortunately, even though the
voters voted to protect embryonic
stem cell research in the state consti-
tution, there are repeated and ongo-
ing attempts to try to block this in the
legislature," Morrison said.
Right to Life of Michigan, a non-
profit organization against embry-
onic stem cell research, supports the
proposed amendments to the law. Ed
Rivet, Right to Life of Michigan leg-
islative director, said there needs to
be more public reporting because the
voters who approved Proposal 2 have
"a right to know" information like
how many embryos are being donated.
"That's just transparency and a lit-
9rle sun shining research, as you might
actual filming and creation of the show
would have on me.
As my time abroad progressed, I
began having daily contact with TV
producers, casting directors and pro-
duction assistants about legal paper-
work and planning for filming my
segment ofthe pilot. My mother was an
absolute wreck about this and did not
want me to make myself so vulnerable
on camera. She was worried I would
be exploited. Other family members
and friends warned me that, unlike my
website, I would have no control over
the editing of the show.
But the producers continually reas-
sured me it was a documentary and
not reality television, that the segment
.would represent me in a fair, truthful
way. I thoughtcmy family was justbeing
overprotective and I ignored them.
While I was still in Spain I reached
out to my friends about having them
appear on the show with me, but to no
avail. Not one agreed to appear. Under-
standably, as future doctors, lawyers
and businesswomen, the controversial
TV show could have been detrimental
to their careers - which they weren't
willing to risk.
Eventually Meg (name changed for
say," Rivet said. "You hear a lot about
sun shining government. Well, there
shouldn't be a problem with sun shin-
ing publically-funded research."
THE WORLD STEM CELL SUMMIT
On Monday, University research-
ers will join more than 1,200 scien-
tists, lawmakers, industry leaders
and patients - hailing from 30 coun-
tries - at the Renaissance Center in
Detroit for the 2010 World Stem Cell
Summit. Over the course of three
days, the sixth annual summit will
feature more than 150 speakers and
50 hours of presentations designed to
"unify the stem cell community" and
"advance the field in a robust way,"
according to World Stem Cell Summit
founder and co-chair Bernard Siegel.
"We want to make sure that we
can move this from the lab bench to
the bedside quickly to impact human
health and well being, and the meet-
ing makes that happen," Siegel said.
The summit is sponsored by the
Genetics Policy Institute and co-
I realized these "friends" played
a more important role in the show
E' than I had been led to believe. They
were mouthpieces the producers were
using to create a plot. And what we
were filming was reality television, no
matter what label the producers put
on it.
One night in particular made me
realize how fake this whole show
privacy reasons), the show's casting really was. One of the Snookies and
director, told me to scout out Facebook I went to happy hour at a bar in New
friends. Her constant reassurances York City's Financial District. The
convinced me that it didn't matter if producers bought us drink after drink,
they were my good friends because the but I somehow realized how ridicu-
segment would be about me and me lous the situation was. The producers
alone, not them. They just needed an would pause filming every 15 minutes
entourage to surround me. As a result, to talk to us separately to tell us in
which direction
"I realized the person on the camera they wanted the
wasn't me, but a caricature of me." go (typically, my
sex life). And after
my "friend" was
the fact that my Facebook recruiting rejected by a table of suit-clad busi-
resulted in two blonde versions of Jer- nessmen - the producers had asked us
sey Shore's Snooki didn't faze me much. to scope out men - I told them I was
About two weeks after I returned done filming for the night and insisted
home, we began filming in New York on a ride home.
City, where I was living for the sum- The stress the show was caus-
mer. Over the course of about amonth ing me resulted in physical as well as
and a half we filmed various segments, emotional reactions: a rash broke out
including paintballing with some male on my back that didn't go away until
acquaintances from my abroad pro- filming stopped. I wrote the producer
gram and barhopping with the Snook- an e-mail telling her how upset I was,
ies. And over the course of those 90 butI had signed a contract. I would be
days or so, I slowly began to realize fined if I didn't go on, soI had no choice
that my family's worries of exploita- but to continue with the show.
tion were coming true. I realized the Though reluctantly, I contin-
person on camera wasn't me, but a ued filming until the last day finally
caricature of me. approached. Even though I had told
the producers I didn't want to speak
with a therapist on camera, they insist-
ed. She asked me all types of personal
questions that I refused to answer
on camera, including ones about my
family. When I resisted, the therapist
reproached me, raising her voice: "Oh,
you're willing to write about your sex
life on the Internet, but you're not will-
ing to talk now?" I felt like I legally
had to cooperate, soI foolishly did not
stand up for myself.
Later in the therapy session, the
producers told me they wanted to film
my reaction to interview footage of the
boys I went paintballing with, but it
was clear the footage would make me
upset. I had had enough. I refused to
watch, and ripped off the sound gear
attached to my body as tears streamed
down my face. And, of course, Meg
asked me if they could film this. I
didn't respond, but instead grabbed
my belongings and ran for the studio
door, ignoring Meg asking me to keep
in touch.
The episode has yet to air and I'm
crossing my fingers that The CW has
chosen not to pick up the pilot.
I realized I was ready for a more pri-
vate chapter in my life. With the hope
of obtaining this, I shut down my blog.
I want tobe able to make decisions and
have experiences, both good and bad,
without having to worry about how
to share it with the rest of the world
and - possibly more importantly -
how they will react to it. Iam ready for
some silence.
Sasha Wang is an LSA senior.
gan meet this condition, Siegel said.
Check.
Overall, Siegel said organizers
chose Michigan because it is a "state
that supports the field."
In just a short time period, human
embryonic research has made con-
siderable legal and medical strides in
Michigan and across the country. But
even though medical breakthroughs
and events like the World Stem Cell
Summit give researchers hope for the
future of the field, political roadblocks
always have the potential to halt prog-
ress.
As Feldman points out, it's the sick
and dying against the healthy and
powerful.
"I wish one day they would come
into my clinic and ask my ALS
patients, who are suffering terribly,
whether they wanted to be denied the
one, bright ray of hope for a treatment
for this awful disease," Feldman said.
"it is just unconscionable what they
are attempting to do in the name of
politics."
hosted by the Michigan Economic
Development Corporation and the
University Research Corridor - a
research collaboration between the
University of Michigan, Michigan
State University and Wayne State Uni-
versity. Scheduled speakers include
Democratic Gov. Jennifer Granholm
and U.S. Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich).
The University will have a large
presence at the event. About a dozen
University researchers - including
Feldman, Wicha and Morrison - are
scheduled to give presentations. Feld-
man will lead a panel on current and
future clinical trials for stem cell
therapies, Wicha willgive atalk about
cancer stem cells and Morrison will
discuss the new insights his lab has
gained into the mechanisms that reg-
ulate stem cells and the links between
stem cells and disease.
Last year the summit was held in
Baltimore in conjunction with John
Hopkins University and the Univer-
sity of Maryland. Previous summits
partnered with the University of
Wisconsin at Madison and Harvard
University. When looking at poten-
tial locations to hold this year's con-
ference, Siegel said organizers based
their decision on three criteria. The
first: is important research occurring
in the state?
"Clearly, Michigan is a leader in the
field of stem cells," he said. "You have
first class researchers, not only at the
University of Michigan, but also at
Michigan State and Wayne State Uni-
versity."
Check.
Second, organizers evaluated resi-
dents' support for research.
"We were very impressed that the
voters of Michigan passed Proposal 2
basically to protect embryonic stem
cell research in the state Constitu-
tion," Siegel said.
Check.
Lastly, organizers looked for
philanthropic support for medical
research within the state. Taubman,
who will receive a National Advocacy
Award at the summit, helped Michi-