CBS reality show The Activist to be retooled as documentary: 'We got it wrong'

A new CBS show, The Activist, was intended to bring liberal politics to an on-the-air, competitive reality series, but immense backlash has its creators reversing course, saying, “We got it wrong.”

CBS said the show is no longer scheduled to premiere on Oct. 22, as previously planned, and will be retooled into a “documentary special.” The previous premise of the show, which was largely decried as tone-deaf, involved six activists competing against each other to draw social media attention to various causes and were judged by celebrities Julianne Hough, Usher, and Priyanka Chopra Jonas.