Contestants on television game show in Argentina vie for the chance for a very different grand prize: A job in the battered South American economy
The top-rated game show in Argentina isn’t “Survivor” or the smash hit “American Idol.” It’s a new show called “Human Resources.”
In Argentina, where economic collapse has 53 per cent of the population living below the poverty line, the dream is a little more humble. Contestants on “Human Resources”, the most popular new show in the South American country, compete for a very different grand prize — a job.
A recent show had the job of a janitor in a gym up for grabs. Depending on the job being offered, up to 1,000 people turn up for the preselection, which gives free publicity to the company offering the job.
The host, Nestor Ibarra, admits the show seems like a crazy concept, but it works.
“I just wish the show didn’t exist,” he told CNN. “It would mean that the country had returned to normal, that there would be work, like we always had in Argentina.”
The idea seems to be catching on in other regions as well. Asia Television Ltd. in Hong Kong is planning on launching a similar show in the fall, called “Win a Job”.
In Argentina, where economic collapse has 53 per cent of the population living below the poverty line, the dream is a little more humble. Contestants on “Human Resources”, the most popular new show in the South American country, compete for a very different grand prize — a job.
A recent show had the job of a janitor in a gym up for grabs. Depending on the job being offered, up to 1,000 people turn up for the preselection, which gives free publicity to the company offering the job.
The host, Nestor Ibarra, admits the show seems like a crazy concept, but it works.
“I just wish the show didn’t exist,” he told CNN. “It would mean that the country had returned to normal, that there would be work, like we always had in Argentina.”
The idea seems to be catching on in other regions as well. Asia Television Ltd. in Hong Kong is planning on launching a similar show in the fall, called “Win a Job”.
