An FCC spokesman confirms the commission received a complaint
about Fox's game show, Our Little Genius, which the networkpulled last month before the show aired and is looking into it.
According to the L.A. Times, the complaint involved a father of one of
the contestants who said his son had been encouraged by the show's producers to
learn certain subject areas.
In a statement released Jan. 7, Mark Burnett, the show's executive producer,
had said: "I recently discovered that there was an issue with how some
information was relayed to contestants during the pre-production of Our
Little Genius. As a result, I am not comfortable delivering the episodes
without re-shooting them. I believe my series must always be beyond reproach,
so I have requested that Fox not air these episodes."
An FCC spokesman said the commission was reviewing the complaint. Since the
show didn't air, it is unclear what authority the FCC would have over the non-broadcast. FCC
spokesman David Fiske was checking into that at press time.
The fact that the FCC is investigating the complaint does not mean that the FCC
necessarily believes the show violated any rules. The FCC routinely follows up
on complaints it receives from the public.
Fox had no comment on the complaint.
