Perfect Spinoff

Reality TV school founder sees Jon, Kate split as perfect spinoff
By Jessica Heslam / MediaBiz
Thursday, May 28, 2009 - Updated 18h ago
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Reporter Jessica Heslam covers the media for the Boston Herald.
E-mail Print (3) Comments Text size Share Buzz up!Jon and Kate Gosselin may be heading for splitsville, but even a divorce wouldn’t squash their lucrative reality TV show careers.

New York Reality TV School founder Robert Galinksy - who is coming to the Hub next week - says a divorce has the makings of the “perfect spinoff.”

“You get two-for-one here,” says Galinsky, who has trained the likes of Angel Chang of Bravo TV’s “The Fashion Show” and Jorge Bendersky of Animal Planet’s “Groomer Has It.”

Both Jon and Kate have been accused of cheating - and the couple couldn’t hide their contempt for each other during Monday night’s ratings-bonanza, season five premiere of TLC’s “Jon & Kate Plus 8.”

Should the couple part ways, Galinsky says smart producers would follow Jon on his journey - and Kate on hers - and watch how the kids adapt.

“This is not sheer entertainment anymore,” he said. “It’s sort of a sociological, almost a documentary, at this point.”

“If it’s done tastefully, it could be a great experience for us to watch,” Galinsky added.

His advice for the duo?

“Continue to be completely honest and let us watch the true nature of a relationship as it evolves,” Galinksy said. “They can’t hide from the cameras.”

Galinsky started his reality TV school last June, and he also works with reality TV show vets, such as Trends from VH1’s “I Love New York.”

A few months after launching his school, Galinsky realized there was an opportunity to bring his training techniques into the corporate arena.

On Monday, Galinsky plans to host a seminar for Women@Thomson Reuters in Boston to work on improving their public presentation skills.

“When somebody does really well on a show, they’re building fans. Fans are basically customers,” Galinksy said. “It’s the same thing in the corporate arena.”

The union representating local TV photographers, editors and technicians has filed a grievance and unfair labor practice charge over the deal struck by WBZ-TV (Ch. 4) and WFXT-TV (Ch. 25) to share video and a helicopter.

In an e-mail to shop members, Andy Dubrovsky of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1228 said the union believes the stations have violated the National Labor Relations Act by entering into the deal without bargaining it with the union first.

Dubrovsky said last night that he believes the video sharing will result in layoffs. The union represents about 70 Channel 4 workers and is negotiating to represent about 100 at Fox 25. A WBZ spokeswoman declined comment. A Fox 25 spokeswoman couldn’t be reached for comment last night.

jheslam@bostonherald.com
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