Bristol Palin Reality Show: 'Life's a Tripp!'
Bristol Palin has a new TV show on Lifetime that will document her transition back to Alaskan life and the work of raising son Tripp.
Palin was introduced to the nation when she was 18 and mom Sarah decided to run for Vice President of the U.S. It was later announced that Bristol was pregnant and engaged to the baby's father, Levi Johnston. The marriage never happened, but Bristol continued to make a name for herself, signing on with various organizations to speak about teen pregnancy.
"From the first moment she was thrust into the public eye, Bristol and her son have been the subjects of a huge amount of curiosity and misunderstanding. This show will reveal the real Bristol Palin and her journey as a daughter, a mother, and a young woman making her way in the world," said the Lifetime press release.
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Lifetime has ordered 10 half-hour episodes of the new series, "Bristol Palin: Life's a Tripp!" No air date has been set yet, and it remains to be seen how well the show will do compared to her mom's one-season flop "Sarah Palin's Alaska."
Bristol has been very active in public life, speaking about teen pregnancy and her life. She worked with the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy and the Candie's Foundation to speak out about abstinence. Controversy ensued, though, when Palin admitted that abstinence-only education was not realistic for teenagers.
"I'm just here to tell teens this is a really hard job. It's not like an accessory on your hip. It's hard work," she told Matt Lauer. In a different interview with Dr. Drew Pinsky, she stated, "I don't want to be named as an abstinence preacher… I'm not out there saying 'don't have sex.' I hate that kind of stuff. Birth control needs to be used effectively each and every single time if you're gonna (sic) be having sex."
This will be Bristol's third reality-TV series; she has previously appeared on "Sarah Palin's Alaska" and "Dancing With the Stars." A show was planned around her appearance on "Dancing With the Stars" but it never happened. Now, though, the young mother has left Hollywood and Arizona to return to Alaska.
Levi Johnston has reportedly not been, and will not be, a part of the new series. A source told Radar Online, "Bristol asked Levi to be on the show, but he said no way. Levi didn't want to be a part of her reality show at all." It's an interesting twist given that Johnston has previously had no problem speaking about his relationship with the Palin family and even planning his own reality TV show.
Sarah and Todd Palin are expected to be a part of the series, and two movies depicting Sarah's failed campaign are to air this month on premium cable channels.
