Jon & Kate Plus 8 is returning with “new” episodes for some reason. And it may be only the beginning.
That is great news for Kate amidst her reported financial struggles. But it’s terrible news for basic decency.
Kate is a terrible person. Bad on camera, yes, but one need only ask Collin Gosselin to learn hear what she was like off camera.
Reality TV audiences have seen and learned a lot more since Jon & Kate Plus 8 first reared its ugly head. And they’re expressing their disgust that this shameful chapter in television history is staging a comeback.
‘Jon & Kate Plus 8’ is coming back to TLC
In 2007, Jon & Kate Plus 8 premiered on TLC. Jon & Kate Plus 8 followed the couple, their twins, and their sextuplets. The titular Jon and Kate Gosselin would go on to divorce in 2009. Two years later, TLC canceled the series.
In 2015, the show returned in a new form, airing three Kate-centric seasons from then until 2017. Then, our long national nightmare came to an end with the show’s cancelation. … Or so we thought.
This week, the TLC Instagram account posted a video showing early footage of Jon & Kate Plus 8.
“Who’s ready for a trip down memory lane?” TLC’s caption ominously threatened followers.
Then, the caption announced: “A #JonandKatePlus8 season 1 marathon starts TONIGHT at 8/7c!”
As one can easily imagine, the comments flooded with justified horror and outrage that TLC is once again platforming Kate Gosselin.
People don’t want to see old or new episodes of ‘Jon & Kate Plus 8’
Comment after comment showed TLC’s own followers express their disgust.
“She should just be banned,” one Instagram user wrote of Kate Gosselin. Another labeled her “the OG Karen,” as Kate’s demeanor, vibe, and iconic haircut have been synonymous with “can I speak to the manager” attitudes since long before the name “Karen” described such a person.
“I’ve never watched 1 episode of that before. It always reeked of child exploitation to me,” another commenter opined. “Y’all can correct me if I’m wrong.” (This person is not wrong; Jon Gosselin himself has spoken about how he wished that he had spared his children from this)
“Why don’t you just replay the Duggars while you’re spotlighting abusers,” asked one commenter. To be clear, the comment was sarcastic.
Unfortunately, many worry that TLC may seriously consider this. A Jon & Kate Plus 8 marathon could be a trial balloon for putting Jim Bob Duggar and his horde of offspring back on TV.
Collin has described how Kate made him a target for her infamous anger. And in addition to the infamous abuses of their fundamentalist cult, the Duggars concealed Josh Duggar’s sex crimes for years — until he finally committed a crime too small for Jim Bob to keep quiet.
Why would anyone put the Gosselins back on television like this?
Jon Gosselin was a loser and a disappointment. Kate Gosselin was infinitely worse.
However, TLC doesn’t seem to care about the moral behavior of its reality stars unless they impact the bottom line. Not the Duggars, not abusive 90 Day Fiance stars, and not Kate.
Warner Bros. Discovery — as the network that churns out garbage like Jon & Kate Plus 8 accumulated enough wealth to buy a cultural institution like Warner Bros — care about profit. While David Zaslav doesn’t seem to be doing a good job of generating profit these days (WBD is down like $10 billion), he ostensibly hopes to make money.
Let us all hope that viewing numbers do not incentivize a return of Kate Gosselin to anyone’s TVs.
