I don’t watch much TV so I’ve missed the recent shows regarding genealogy research. The episodes that I’ve seen of WDYTYA or Faces of America.
Although, I like the concept…I’m not to gungho about sitting down and watching these 2 shows. The fact that they’re based around celebrities. People who may be casually interested in the genealogy. Sure, they want to know where they come from. But, I’m curious how many times did the sit down and open up a dusty book in the back of the Clerk of Courts, sneeze, while they painstakingly search for some sliver of info relating to their one ancestor??
I mean, sure the celebrity shows brings in the ratings. And yes it does make for interesting TV. We’re all curious to see if we could possibly be related to a celebrity somewhere in our tree. But, I think it’s time to incorporate the real deal into the mix! It’s time to help the person that has been researching their trees, but due to limited resources and time, they keep hitting brick walls.
But, the funny part is..I started writing just now and my mind took a side track. Or the ancestors made me stop for a few minutes. When I stopped, I visited my BF (blog friend) Luckie to see what she’s been up too. Her very blog today is about what I was already thinking/writing.
The ancestors lead us when we begin this journey…sometimes they let us stand..sometimes they make us walk..others..we’re running!!! Way to go Luckie!!!
I posted s similar opinion — that I think it would be better to help plain people unravel their stories — and got a LOT of comment agreeing with that idea. Even though I think WDYTYA did a very good job, I would still rather see plain people.
I wouldn’t mind seeing a show that had a mix of celebrity and most non celebrity people.
I think it will happen A! If we keep making our voices heard, it will happen! Thanks for the shout my Friend & happy to see you back in the mix! There is A LOT happening on the genea-front & I don’t want you to miss a minute of it!:-)
Luckie.
I too would like to see some “regular” people mixed in with the celebs. That being said, I also have been enjoying the English version of WDYTYA on youtube. It seems to go into the research a little bit more. But, I’m still going to watch – it’s just fun to see other people make genealogical discoveries 🙂