The fact that Montauk residents are against Summer House is not at all surprising. I know the Bravo reality TV show has not even aired yet, but there were reports that people were annoyed when it was filming, so it was inevitable that they were going to be upset when the previews started to surface.
Obviously, there is going to be even more protest once Summer House episodes start airing on Bravo. The same thing happened with Jersey Shore and pretty much any reality show with a location that’s integral to its story lines and marketing. The irony is that all of the protests against these reality shows bring them even more attention and possibly increase viewers.
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In a not-so-subtle move to generate buzz, two twins from Summer House had lunch with Stassi Schroeder during the last episode of Vanderpump Rules. Obviously, they’re trying to go for some sort of crossover effect and bring the Vanderpump Rules viewers into the Summer House fandom before the show even begins. It wasn’t organic to see the twins at SUR and it felt too contrived, and that is saying a lot coming from reality TV addict like myself.
I’m going to give this show a chance because I give every Bravo shot a chance, but for people who have a mind of their own, I doubt they were impressed by the little taste we got from the Vanderpump Rules guest appearance. The people of Montauk are also unimpressed with the show and there has been a lot of protest against it, of course. According to Page Six, Montauk’s Chamber of Commerce does not approve of the show and claimed it was not even really filmed there.
The Chamber of Commerce president Paul Monte said, “Bravo falsely puts out that Summer House was filmed in a Montauk house.”
That’s not a huge deal. I mean, most of the Real Housewives shows aren’t even filmed in the city that the title claims. Many of them live a little outside of the city and just claim it as their own. Maybe I’m the only one who isn’t offended by the misleading location of the series? I really don’t care about that as viewer. I get the point. Montauk doesn’t want tourism from the show to de-class the place and make it less exclusive than it’s supposed to seem be. I just come from the “all publicity is good publicity” way of thinking when it comes to reality TV-driven tourism and increased profits for local businesses.
RELATED: Montauk Residents Complain About ‘Summer House’ Filming
Still, the president added, “In fact, the house was located in Amagansett. Furthermore, the producers were denied a permit to film on public lands anywhere in East Hampton Town, and that includes the hamlet of Montauk.”
This man emphasized the same point that we have heard throughout the years with other reality shows when he added, “We are very concerned that this show promotes a false picture of Montauk as a raucous party town, when in fact, the complete opposite is true.”
Even if Montauk is not a “party town,” the people on the show like to party and the show is about those people, not the town as a whole or its residents.
It never made sense to me when people just criticized an entire community for the actions of a few people on reality TV. Maybe I only feel this way since I am from New Jersey and had to respond to a lot of Jersey Shore criticism back in the day. My point is, anyone with a half a brain would realize that this show is about the individuals on it and it would be dumb to characterize the entire town for the actions of a friend group on summer vacation. People need to chill out, look at the glass half full, and enjoy the increase in revenue from tourism. Every “classy” location has ratchet people in the midst. Just accept it and move on.
TELL US – ARE PEOPLE JUSTIFIED TO COMPLAIN ABOUT SUMMER HOUSE CAPITALIZING ON MONTAUK? OR ARE THEY OVERREACTING?
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