- Ken Lanci: The Snooki of political reality television.
Cuyahoga County doesn’t exactly lack in the area of political theater, but Ken Lanci hopes to hike that bar a few notches past your garden-variety federal corruption probe.
A wealthy businessman mounting an underdog bid for Cuyahoga County executive, Lanci has just launched The Candidate — what his campaign calls the “first-ever political reality television program.” The first episode aired last weekend on WEWS-TV 5, in the coveted Sunday noon slot. The riveting drama that unfolded could be likened to that of a library staff meeting, minus the coffee.
The show was Lanci’s idea, says campaign consultant Jim Trakas, putting to rest speculation that ABC executives had demanded more series about middle-aged white guys mounting hopeless campaigns.
“He wants to promote politics in a different, interesting way,” says Trakas. “Some of it is truly a reality series — he’s a civilian who’s never done this before, and he wants to promote that.”
The plan is to air an episode each week until the election in September, or until Lanci’s time slot is bought out by a ShamWow commercial.
Short excerpted video from The Candidate after the jump. Good lunchtime viewing if you're in need of a nap.
