New Wave of Trouble for ‘Temptation Island’

So what, exactly, would someone have to do in order to be kept off Fox’s hit “reality” series “Temptation Island,” how long would it take the network and producers to find out, and what would they tell viewers if they did?

In next week’s episode, two contestants from the show, Taheed Watson and Ytossie Patterson, will be removed for misleading the producers about the fact they had a child together. The program, about four couples tempted by singles in the island setting of Belize, has maintained that it explicitly forbade couples with children from participating, which would bring an innocent third party into the mix, and only learned of the child during filming.

However, a simple Lexis database search uncovered public documents dealing with the paternity suit filed against Watson in 1999 and subsequent pleadings pertaining to financial support for the child, who, according to those documents, lives with Patterson and was born in December 1998.

That search and others--using only the Southern California couple’s first names, which were all that the show revealed--found a host of other data, including a tax lien recorded against Watson by the state of California in 1995 and two civil judgments entered against Patterson, in 1993 and 1996, by landlords for failure to pay rent.

Patterson, who is presented on the show as an executive administrator, also listed “model/actress” as her occupation in a document filed in April regarding support for the couple’s son. Patterson had at least a brief acting career, credited with a small role in the 1986 movie “Vamp” and featured in The Times in 1987 while trying out for the Hollywood Starlets, a touring all-women’s softball team consisting of models and actresses.

Such revelations--some of them brought to The Times’ attention by a reader simply using the Internet--raise questions about how or whether this information was missed, especially given that Fox said it would employ extra precautions in the wake of admitted background-check lapses pertaining to its “Who Wants to Marry a Multi-Millionaire?” special last year.

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Fox declined to discuss the selection process on “Temptation Island,” citing what a spokesman characterized as competitive reasons. A network source indicated that Fox was aware of some of the cases cited but that property or credit disputes were not considered grounds to eliminate someone from the “casting” process.

In fact, those who choose participants for unscripted programs say they are primarily looking for two things: felony convictions and any indication that contestants might pose a threat, to themselves or others, if subjected to the experience of the show.

Producers of reality programs and game shows also try to avoid booking too many actors and obvious publicity-seekers, who are often eager to garner such exposure. The producers of “Blind D1635018028formers.

A producer who has worked in unscripted television, speaking on condition of anonymity, said discovering that any applicant has falsely answered questions should serve as a warning to producers, adding that a history of civil disputes can also serve as a red flag--particularly when building a prime-time TV show, representing a multimillion-dollar investment, around that “talent.”

Fox has stressed that the network intends to be especially cautious regarding such programs after the negative publicity surrounding “Marry a Multi-Millionaire,” hiring a risk-assessment firm charged with vetting its shows.

In an online chat on Fox’s Web site last week, “Temptation Island” host Mark Walberg said the program was taped in September and chose its four couples from over 250 that applied. When someone asked if there was a procedure “to make sure these people are in a real relationship and not just two people trying to score a free trip,” Walberg responded that there were “extensive background checks.”

Still, 250 couples represent a relatively small pool of contenders compared to other reality series. The original “Survivor” chose its 16 players from over 6,000 applicants, and more than 49,000 submitted themselves for “Survivor: The Australian Outback,” which will premiere on CBS this weekend.

During a news conference earlier this month, “Survivor” producer Mark Burnett said those overseeing the sequel “weeded out pretty quickly” people who just wanted exposure on television, “because that really isn’t a good motivation to suffer 42 days. The primary motivation would be people who would probably do ‘Survivor’ even if it wasn’t a TV show.”

As for “Temptation Island,” there are indications the producers struggled in finding contestants, which could have compromised the background-check process.

Joanna Simkin, who works at a real estate company in San Francisco, said she was stopped several months ago, while shopping on Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles, by a recruiter who wanted to know if she had a boyfriend and would be willing to take part in the show. When she declined, Simkin, 21, said she was asked if she would be “interested in being one of the temptresses. . . . I was thinking it sounds pretty skanky.”

An assistant to “Temptation Island” executive producer Chris Cowan at Rocket Science Laboratories said the company has been instructed to refer all inquiries to Fox. The network declined to make Watson or Patterson available for comment as well, and their ouster will be dealt with during next week’s episode.

Asked about the show by reporters earlier this week, News Corp. President Peter Chernin was quoted as saying of “hand-wringing” in the media regarding the propriety of the concept, “Get over it. It’s entertainment.”

“Temptation Island” has become a major ratings success for Fox. The latest episode was watched by nearly 17 million people Wednesday, based on Nielsen Media Research estimates, trailing only NBC’s “The West Wing” in its time period.

Viewership dropped slightly compared to the previous week--when NBC offered a “West Wing” rerun--but the show continues to easily win its slot among adults age 18 to 49, the primary demographic sought by advertisers. Roughly 10.8 million of its viewers fell in that age bracket Wednesday, versus about 8 million for the Emmy-winning NBC drama.

Though “Temptation Island” has developed an avid following and is being watched by millions of people, Simkin said she had no second thoughts about her decision.

“If you’re going to get exposure and publicity,” she said, “is this really what you want to be known for?”