Survivor: A response to the conspiracy theorists

Those who follow my Twitter page are likely already aware of my enjoyment of this latest installment of Survivor. The show is clearly pushing Russell as this season's "star," and I'm drinking the proverbial Kool-Aid. From his slithering behavior to his nearly flawless strategy to the impeccable way he's read and manipulated people, I've been utterly entertained by his antics. And since the merge, I've sometimes literally been sitting at the edge of my seat wondering who would be voted off. It's been a long time since I've been this drawn to a season of Survivor -- surely no small feat considering this is the 19th edition of the popular reality series.

Naturally, IMDb.com -- a forum that has become increasingly unbearable to read -- has found a way to put a damper on this season. You have countless people (who I assume to be a vocal minority) who believe that the show is rigged. They argue that there's absolutely no way that Russell could possibly find three immunity idols, two of which he received no clues for. Likewise, they find it unbelievable that he hasn't already been voted off, and that the other contestants are being urged to keep him on the show. And anybody who believes that the show isn't fixed is simply being "naive."

First off, since Survivor is a contest that rewards the winner with money, it is ILLEGAL to tamper with the results in any way -- and that especially includes rigging variables that would ensure that a particular contestant remains in the game.

Further, what do the powers that be benefit from such a stunt? Mark Burnett, who produces the show, perhaps has more to lose than anybody. In addition to Survivor, he's involved with The Apprentice, The Contender, Shark Tank, and a variety of other reality show contests. If it's revealed that one of his competitions has been fixed, his entire career loses credibility. What does he gain from that?

Then there's CBS, currently the #1 network on television. As the so-called King of the Mountain, they're really not all that desperate to bring in audience. Tarnishing one of their most identifiable programs -- which typically brings in over 13 million viewers -- is hardly a necessary evil. Likewise, another popular series known as The Amazing Race calls CBS home as well. Tampering with the credibility of one of these programs can easily hinder the other. Again -- the ends don't justify the means here.

And finally, what do the other contestants gain from keeping a legitimate threat in the game? They're competing against each other for money, after all.

And you would think that this point should go without saying, but obviously it needs to be said: We are merely seeing an edited version of what has happened. It may seem like Russell stumbled upon these hidden idols without much work or complication, but what we don't see is that he may have been spending ten hours a day, three days straight looking for these idols. And, as host Jeff Probst has said, producers WANT the contestants to find the idols, because it adds a new element to the game. It's a bit pointless to hide it if nobody's going to find it. And as we saw from a recent episode, other contestants are more interested in following Russell as he looks for the idol, instead of looking for the idol themselves. He seems to be the only one who cares to find it.

So, no, I do not believe that this latest season of Survivor is rigged. I just think they hit the jackpot with a great character and they're doing everything they can, through editing, to make him the star of the show. And you know what? More people are talking about the show than I remember in quite some time.