Thursday 15 April 1999
By eBroadcast Staff and agencies.

And no, we’re not talking about the music network showing nude photos of Jesse Camp

'Like, Uhhhh, I totally don't know, you know?'

Imagine a UPN program that follows 12 teen-aged boys through a daylong, in-your-face encounter with prison life and convicts at New Jersey's East Jersey State Prison. It’s almost enough to make you tune in to the pathetic excuse for a network, right? Well, maybe, but you’d have to find out where the hell it is first (clue: on any given night, surf the channels until you find a sitcom that is absolutely unbearable to watch, and you’re probably there).

Scared Straight! '99, which is based on the Oscar-winning 1978 documentary Scared Straight is set to premiere Thursday on UPN, and the show's producer is reportedly at work on a new version for MTV.

The prison spots were shot last month. The producer, and resident prison boy-toy, Arnold Shapiro, will shoot follow-up segments, where the boys (who are now experts at picking up the soap), and their parents, gauge whether the experience left a lasting impression. No word yet whether there will be a segment that assesses any/all rectal damage.

MTV is using the special to kick off an anti-violence public service campaign aimed at scaring the hell out of teenagers who might otherwise become prison bitches.