According to this story on GamePolitics.com, Dr. Phil — an Oprah-funded, hour-long glimpse into the depressing state of what America considers to be the psychiatric profession — recently approached Gamer Dad founder Andrew Bub as a possible guest for an upcoming segment they have planned on the perils of MMO addiction amongst teens. This seemed like great news, as Mr. Bub is one of the more highly respected, moderate, sane members of the gaming media megasphere, and in all honesty, I think he would be an excellent guest on any show that sought to realistically talk about the dangers of gaming and children. Of course, if it were as simple as that, I couldn’t have made that clever headline about sensationalism.
Hit the jump for a non-moustache-based reason to despise Phil McGraw.
According to Mr. Bub:
A few months ago – mid-June I think – I got a phone call from someone claiming to be a Dr. Phil staffer (not producer) and they asked me if I’d like to be on the show to talk about video games.
They asked about my stance and as I described what GamerDad is all about – moderation, games are no worse than any other media, informed parenting equals good parenting – they seemed to lose interest (my perception).
Since Andrew has yet to hear back from Phil’s “people”, and the shows on gaming are supposed to air during the upcoming week, it’s safe to assume the staffers were more than a bit turned off by the fact that Mr. Bub wasn’t willing to defecate on a flag or eat a child as a result of his fondness for gaming. I can understand they make their money by outraging bored housewives stuck eternally in the Dust Bowl region of these United States — a region that would be known for domestic Valium abuse if only there wasn’t a certain hip cache to it that frightens off the married-my-high-school-sweetheart-because-he-was-more-attractive-than-my-brother set — but by neglecting one of the few people who could come on their program and present a fair, unzealous view of the realities behind raising a child in a world immersed in gaming culture their show loses a ton of credibility.
Unfortunately, Dr. Phil gets a fair amount of bleed-over from the Oprah Army — a group so fanatical about their devotion to their ebony television goddess that they would murder all of us in our sleep if only She Of Much Girth asked such a sacrifice of them — and as such none of them have any interest in any reality that doesn’t revolve around which book they’ve been called to read this week or their yearly pilgrimage to the Neo-Mecca of Chicago.
