The family reality TV series “19 Kids and Counting” is all gone when the TLC network officially cancelled the show last month after seven seasons on the airwaves. But it seems that the ghosts of its past continue to haunt the show particularly on the crucial issue of pedophilia.
The cancellation of the show was attributed to the inexcusable acts of Josh Duggar, the eldest son of Jim Bob and Michelle, while he was still a teenager.
Josh publicly came out with an apology as a result of published reports that he molested five girls including some of his sisters, by fondling them, when he was about 14 to 15 years old, which placed the events to have transpired from 2002 to 2003 or about five to six years before the show started on TLC.
As a reality show that focuses on the life of the Duggar family and touches on the values of purity, modesty, and faith in God, the controversy on Josh Duggar was too damning for the show that TLC was prompted to suspend the airing of its airing on May 22 before finally deciding to cancel it on July 16 or barely two months later.
Another child molestation issue
Less than three weeks after the official cancellation of the show, reports are now coming out that William Blankinship, the editor of “19 Kids and Counting” has also faced numerous child molestation and pornography charges in the past.
Blankinship was reportedly arrested in 2011 for 10 felony counts of second-degree sexual exploitation of a child through child pornography, reports In Touch Weekly.
Based on court documents obtained, the 60-year-old Blankinship who is from Raleigh, North Carolina was arrested four years ago and charged with 10 felony counts after local authorities discovered a disturbing collection of graphic videos and lewd images of small children in his possession.
The girls in Blankinship’s collection ranged from ages one to 11, and the pictures and videos obtained were quite horrific as most of them show the young girls being forced to engaged in various sexual acts by adult males, notes the Inquisitr.
Blankinship was part of the “19 Kids and Counting” editorial staff from 2008 to 2010 before he was indicted. He was eventually sacked from the show after his arrest was made public, but his disturbing interactions with so many kids in the show had obviously raised speculations about his behaviour towards them.
In addition to “19 Kids and Counting,” Blankinship was also involved in other family-based reality TV shows that features numerous children, namely “Kate Plus 8” and “Table for 12.” But when the production firms learned of the shocking allegations against him, his employment was immediately terminated.
Many of the fans of these types of family-based reality shows, particularly the parents, felt unsettling about the whole thing just imagining how parents of those kids were feeling when they unknowingly had their kids interacting with a pedophile in disguise.
Invested time and energy
Following the cancellation of “19 Kids and Counting” last month, Jim Bob and Michelle expressed their gratitude and appreciation to the film crew for showing up at their house for nearly a decade every year. They said that they have considered them as almost members of their family as well. Jim Bob and Michelle lauded how the film crew invested time and energy into their family’s lives.
They likewise expressed their appreciation to those who religiously followed their show right from the onset, saying that they were happy to open their home to the world to share Bible principles that are often answers to life’s problems.
Jim Bob and Michelle also referred to the controversy about Josh as a painful situation for the family, but they were able to overcome it nonetheless because of their faith in God. They hope that others who are in similar dark situations will also find their way out, hope, and healing too.