Mariah Smith

Mariah Smith is a comedian, writer and producer in Los Angeles. She is also the host of Spectacle: An Unscripted History of Reality TV. Follow her on Twitter here and Instagram here.

Kindly introduce yourself and tell us what you do!
I'm Mariah Smith and I'm a writer, producer and comedian known for the podcast Spectacle: An UnScripted History of Reality TV and Keeping Up With the Kontinuity Errors that tracks the continuity errors in Keeping Up With the Kardashians.

How would you describe how your brain works? Keeping Up With the Kontinuity Errors seems like something that would be impossible to track. What about this idea made you think...this has to happen?!?
Oh my goodness, I come from TV so I've always had an eye for detail and errors in editing which is how KUWTKE came to be. I also consume so much pop culture at a rapid rate, it sort of stays with me and I can recall, almost to the day, when something happened or when someone wore something. As for the initial idea, I was working as a production assistant on Vh1'S Best Week Ever, and I was in charge of covering KUWTK and that's when I noticed all of the continuity errors. So, I created a Tumblr that I thought would be seen by 5 people and by the end of the week 10,000 people had looked at it, so I decided to keep going with it. 

Can you talk about the format/structure of Spectacle?
So, with Spectacle we break down each show we're talking about with specific moments and more global commentary on the shows. We hear from people who were on the shows themselves, journalists, experts who give us insight and a little more understanding about each program.

Why is this kind of journalistic approach to reality TV important?
I think it's important to treat all pieces of art, reality tv included, with respect. Reality TV is a cultural phenomenon that's impacted our pop culture, ways we see celebrities and politics. It's nothing to look down upon. So, with a journalistic approach we're treating the genre with equal weight as we would prestige TV or important moments in history.

Can you tease us with anything exciting coming up?
I'm really excited for people to listen to our 90 Day Fiance episode. It's so insightful, yet hysterical. We have great guests, Marcy Jarreau and Nicole Byer and some other amazing experts.

Thanks, Mariah!