Paris to pick a pal in Dubai

AFP

US socialite Paris Hilton gestures during a press conference in the Gulf emirate of Dubai on June 17, 2009. Hilton is taking her reality TV show and a hunt for a new best friend to the distant shores of Dubai, and will have to tone down some of the progam's racier aspects. AFP PHOTO/KARIM SAHIB UAE-US-PEOPLE-HILTON

Just when you thought the reality TV landscape could not get any worse – Paris Hilton is out to

prove you wrong. Paris Hilton’s Dubai BFF is the blonde heiress’s latest bright idea.

As the title suggests, Hilton looks for a new best friend in the United Arab Emirates. Yes, really. If you thought your scouting for strangers on Facebook was shameful wait till you see this.

Having successfully worked the title in the US and the UK, Hilton saw Dubai as the next best place.

The season starts off with 20 women battling it out to try to impress the spoilt American brat. Though the ultimate prize is becoming Hilton’s new best friend, no one knows what that really means.

Does it mean moving to the US to join in her wild ways? Or maybe free stays in the executive suites of all the Hilton hotels the world over? Whatever it is, what young woman in her right mind would put herself up for the humiliation of standing in line to be selected by Hilton in the way slaves used to be sold?

Had the ultimate prize been money, a scholarship or even a fully paid stay at a posh resort it would have made sense, but this is not the case here.

Perhaps this show is meant to be interesting because it is shot in the Middle East where the rules, especially against women, are somewhat repressive. Since Hilton is used to having things her way, it should be worth looking at how she settles in.

For instance, she won’t be allowed near alcohol. This is the UAE, people. You can’t even kiss in public and not get into trouble. Women can’t wear trousers and jeans, let alone short skirts. Hilton is a loose canon, so it should be interesting to see how she deals with all the restrictions.

As for the winner, she had better be an orphan because anyone from a steady home settling for something as embarrassing as this should be disowned. Imagine your only claim to fame is being Paris Hilton’s best friend. And just recently, on her last visit to South Africa, Hilton’s real BFF was bust with marijuana in yet another stain on the Hilton name.

Hilton’s friends include the likes of Kim Kardashian and Lindsay Lohan. Perhaps the girls in Dubai will want to follow in Kim’s footsteps because after consorting with Hilton, and the “accidental” release of a sex tape, Kim became a star in her own right. Sies.