Xavier Von Erck, the founder and director of operations of Perverted-Justice.com (best known from NBC’s “To Catch a Predator” show) has an interesting blogsite where he recalls some of his experiences with television producers.  Here are some excerpts from Mr. Von Erck:

Everyone wants to be Chris Hansen

- Prior to us doing "To Catch a Predator", Al Roker wanted to be Chris Hansen. Roker's production crew had seen the local stings we had done and "The Roke!" wanted to do the same thing. The pitch? Guys would come to a house, knock on the door and America's Favorite Weatherman would confront them about trying to have sex with a kid. I respect Al Roker … but the idea of him confronting internet predators is just too ridiculous not to chuckle at. CourtTV ended up telling them that they wouldn't air predators without unblurred faces (this is all prior to large-scale police cooperation), so the issue was moot anyways. Still, you have to give Roker props for wanting to be "Chris Hansen" before Chris Hansen.

 - After "To Catch a Predator" got popular, we started getting a deluge of requests. How about Dr. Phil? The Dr. Phil show contacted us wanting to do a segment where we opened a house and had predators arrive. Then Dr. Phil would be in the "Chris Hansen" role, grilling predators.

- John Walsh and his production company contacted us wanting to do TCAP editions on America's Most Wanted with Walsh in the Hansen role.  Walsh went on to do his own TCAP-copies while trying to attack the "To Catch a Predator" shows saying that his are better (Which, btw, is pretty fucking odd. The point is to expose pedophiles, what is this competition shit?).

- Internet gossip website TMZ wanted to discuss a show opportunity with us. Again, another entity wanting to be Chris Hansen. I still to this day have no idea how the hell this would fit into their syndicated gossip show. Apparently my mind isn't attuned to the level of genius that show producers are.

- Current talk show host Steve Wilkos (Ex-bodyguard of Jerry Springer) and his staff emailed me a proposal for To Catch a Creep (working title).  It's amazing how unimaginative producers can be.

- The whipped cream and cherry on the top of the wannabe Hansen parade? The Maury Povich show… (Weeeeeiiirrrrrddddd)

TV talk shows tape a ridiculous number of shows in a row. They tape like a whole week at a time usually. The experience is very frenetic, everyone is very rush rush and for good reason. People think that these hosts are all friendly and personable, but they're not. You never meet them. Montel never says hello or anything like that, not even to the kids on the show who had been recovered. You're hustled like cattle, here and there. The producers are all really nice, but the experience is rather weird because once you get on the stage, a talk show host will act like he's your best pal. Just a very fake experience in general…

Nothing will ever top Tyra fucking Banks' producer. The same producer that wanted us to do weekly "stings" with Dr. Keith also wanted us to do something "new" with Tyra! Then she proceeded to give me the absolute worst pitch of all time.  You see, they wanted us to pose as perverted photographers. Yes, adult males. We were then to go into internet chat rooms in the Las Vegas area and solicit teen girls to do photo shoots. Yes, photo shoots where they would be expected to take off some of their clothes. The girls would then arrive at the location, be greeted by a male Tyra producer (I guess), and then after they agreed to but prior to them disrobing, Tyra Banks would pop out from behind the back like Soul Sistah Number Eleven and lecture the girls on being so unsafe!  That, for so many reasons, is truly the most awful idea of all time.