FCC Asked to Probe ‘Manhunt’

A former contestant on the UPN television network’s unscripted series “Manhunt” filed a formal complaint with federal regulators, charging the show’s producers, Paramount Television, with trying to rig the outcome.

Jacqueline Kelly of El Segundo asked the Federal Communications Commission to investigate whether Paramount violated federal laws when it allegedly asked that certain scenes of the series be shot again and created false story lines.

Kelly said scenes were shot to create fake story lines and misrepresent the rules, results and prize money at stake. She said in her complaint that the prize money was to be given after the last show aired and would not be given unless the contestants agreed to participate in the re-shooting of scenes.

The show features 13 contestants who compete for a $250,000 jackpot by hunting each other down with paintball guns. UPN, a unit of Viacom Inc., was weighing whether to cancel the show after reports surfaced about scenes being staged and the outcome being rigged.