Toddlers & Tiaras – Fake

At one point, TLC actually lived up to its name as The Learning Channel. However, these days, while it does not teach its viewers much, it certainly entertains them for hours on end. One of its biggest shows, both in ratings and in controversies, is Toddlers & Tiaras, which followers toddler beauty pageant contestants and their intense, controlling parents.

However, almost all of Toddlers & Tiaras is fake. Recently, the New York Post did an expose on the show, revealing that the feuds between parents and children are often entirely a fabrication of the show. As pageant organizer Maxine Tinnel explained, “It is truly not as competitive and crazy as what you see on TV. When we have downtime, the kids are sitting on the floor coloring or playing together. A lot of times parents will get together, maybe take the kids out to the movies or to eat.”