Protesters target NBC military ‘reality’ show

Demonstrators gather outside the New York NBC studios in Manhattan on August 13, 2012 to protest the debut of a new reality show which they say presents war as a “game.” The show, “Stars Earn Stripes,” is hosted by former NATO commander Wesley Clark, and pits celebrities paired with servicemen who face each other in missions inspired by real military maneuvers. AFP /BRIGITTE DUSSEAU

NEW YORK – About 100 protesters in New York gathered Monday to speak out against a new NBC television reality show that will pair celebrities and service members for quasi-military exercises.

The show, called “Stars Earn Stripes,” is hosted by retired general Wesley Clark and co-stars Republican ex-governor Sarah Palin’s husband Todd, actor Dean Cain, boxer Laila Ali and former US Olympic champion skier Picabo Street.

NBC said it’s “an action-packed competition show that pays homage to the men and women who serve in the US Armed Forces and our first-responder services.”

Protesters said it was in bad taste when US troops are in conflicts in Afghanistan and elsewhere.

“Having my son return from two REAL wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, with the cost of war carried in his body and heart, I find this deeply offensive,” said Sarah Fuhro, a member of Military Families Speak Out.

“Having met wounded children and refugees from these and other wars, I find this disgusting. I hope NBC will reconsider this form of entertainment.”

Seven Nobel Prize winners, including South Africa’s Desmond Tutu, have also signed a letter asking NBC to yank the show.

Joan Wile, founder of Grandmothers Against the War, called NBC’s plan “an abomination” and a “reality show glamorizing war while our young people die in real wars.”