Is It a Reality Show?
No.
Okay, what am I talking about. Generally speaking, there are no reality shows. Like, if you put normal people in abnormal situations, that’s not reality television, not reality. But then, this was not enough, so people started creating even “realer” shows. Jerry Springer comes to mind. When I attempted to clarify whether Jerry Springer is real or not, I read that Jerry Springer said: “I’m the first to say [my show is] stupid. I wouldn’t watch it.” And so my quest for truth ended. And you know what? I’d love to be a guest on the show. Which brings us to the motivation of today’s post.
Caleb Hammer - Financial Audit, 2nd Feb 2026 (YouTube post)
Here’s the thing: I’ve put a lot of care, time, and even money into trying to make the best educational resources we could- and even more, to give our guests the best possible experience and outcome they could possible have.
And that’s why less than 2% of those who purchase our products request a refund, even though we give full refunds no questions asked. It’s also why the average FA guest has paid off $25,000 of bad debt in 12 months.
I take their experience, privacy, and results incredibly seriously. So when someone says I don’t care about our guests, or treat them poorly, or our products are a scam- I get worked up. Maybe a bit too worked but, but you know me at this point lol that’s who I am.
I love ever guest we’ve had (okay, a couple maybe not so much over 4 years 😅), so when I’m told I’m sexist, racist, transphobic, or homophobic to them or in general, I take that very personally. I love EVERY single guest that has come on.
Yes, we make over the top titles and thumbnails that leans into crude humor, and I roast tf out of people and say bad words- but not only do we get consent 5 times before we do- they literally ask for it!! Guests are always fans of the show, and half the time they come in with a lists of over the top inappropriate jokes or roasts that will be thrown towards them in our stupid little show haha.
I just really think we need to stop being offended on behalf of people who are not offended themselves. We make our show with no ill intentions, and we PROVABLY have more onboarding and better onboarding than any “reality TV show” that has ever been made. And if that wasn’t the case, we wouldn’t be getting two past guests to show up every single week for our Hammer elite show, Audit Update!
So yes, I get upset when I hear these things. They are very hurtful. It takes what me and my team spend our entire lives doing and whittle it down into “Caleb bad, racist, scammer, creepy, weird, sexist”… you get the picture. You’re not just hurting me, but you’re hurting my entire team, and every guest who has signed up to be on the show.
A phrase that needs to be repeated more often: this content is not for you, and that’s okay ☺️ I love you all so much, thank you for being along for the ride ❤️
When I discovered the show, I couldn’t believe people would go on a show to be publicly humiliated. What I didn’t consider, is that those people don’t care, just like I wouldn’t care being made fun of on the Jerry Springer show. It’s all fake. Caleb said it himself! They bring their own jokes. Who cares about bank statements and credit card debt. Let’s make reality television.
Bryan: Thanks for your time tonight. It’s a great pleasure to be with you.
John: It’s a great pleasure to be with you, Bryan, and good evening.
Bryan: You’re a media commentator, yeah?
John: Well, I think you’ll find a lot of Australians are media—I mean, who isn’t really?
John: This is a very dynamic time for the media in Australia.
John: It’s partly to do with the time of year, Brian, so many new shows are beginning. I mean, your new show’s just started, for example, which is very exciting.
Bryan: It’s not really a show…
John: The rating is freck off, right? I’d be very pleased…
Bryan: No, I was actually talking about the industry. Some channels are really struggling, aren’t they?
John: Well, it’s a very tough market out there. The environment’s very tough.
Bryan: What are the big shows?
John: Well, reality television is still king, Bryan.
Bryan: What is “reality television”?
John: Reality television is where they get normal people and they put them in a situation that normal people wouldn’t normally find themselves in, and [Bryan: And you film it] everything’s filmed and then they broadcast that.
Bryan: So, in what sense is that “reality”?
John: It’s not reality, Bryan. It’s “reality television.”
Bryan: Because none of this would be happening if television crews weren’t there.
John: No, absolutely right, yeah, it’s not reality.
Bryan: But you said it is reality television.
John: It is, yeah, exactly, Bryan.
Bryan: But, you say, it’s not reality?
John: It’s not reality Bryan, no, it’s reality television.
Bryan: Sorry, I’m confused. Can you give me an example? For example…
John: Well, the big three at the moment, Bryan, are MKR, TSI, and WSS.
Bryan: What are they?
John: Well, MKR, “My Kitchen Rules,” is essentially a cooking competition, Bryan.
Bryan: Why are there so many cooking shows?
John: Oh, it’s a license requirement in Australian television, Bryan. You can’t get a license if you don’t have a certain number of cooking programs.
Bryan: And what’s TSI?
John: TSI is the Test Series in India, Bryan. Test series of cricket matches in India between India and Australia.
Bryan: And India just won the second test.
John: They just won the second test, they scored 503, it says here.
Bryan: What did Australia score?
John: Australia? Get a magnifying glass, anyone? I can’t quite read that.
Bryan: And what’s WSS?
John: Well, that’s the great new exciting new one: Western Suburbs of Sydney, Bryan. [Bryan: Oh, I heard about this] That’s a cracker. They get a whole lot of politicians and they basically drop them into the western suburbs of Sydney.
Bryan: And what do the pollies do out there?
John: Well, they wander about the place, Bryan. They talk to people, they shake hands, [Bryan: Kiss babies?] kiss a few babies…
Bryan: Whereabouts do they do this?
John: Fruit and vegetable shops mostly. Fish shops sometimes. Nepalese takeaway.
Bryan: Right, and they film it all?
John: Everything’s filmed, Bryan, yes indeed.
Bryan: And then what happens?
John: Well, at the end of the series, the public votes.
Bryan: Whoever gets the most votes wins.
John: That’s correct, Bryan, and gets to run the country.
Bryan: Oh, hang on—doesn’t the media run the country?
John: No, no, no. The winner of the series runs the country, Bryan.
Bryan: Who won it last time?
John: A bloke called Tony Windsor from up near Armidale won it last time.
Bryan: Right, but the media are running the show, aren’t they?
John: No, no, Bryan, the person who wins the series gets to run the country.
Bryan: Yeah, but the prize is given by the media.
John: It is, that’s correct, Bryan, yeah.
Bryan: And is Tony Windsor in it this year?
John: He is, but he’s probably not going to win it this year, is he?
Bryan: Well, how do you know that?
John: Why do you think they’re running it in the western suburbs of Sydney?
Bryan: Got no idea.
John: I think you’re pretty much on the money there, Bryan.
Bryan: Thanks for joining us.
John: Couldn’t agree more.
Before I sign off, I’d like to mention Kevin Samuels. Another heavyweight reality TV contender, whose entire spiel was to tell callers that they are average at best, old, fat and that they have too many sketchy baby daddies. Seriously, who would call in to be called all that? I figured the chicks wanted to boost their Instagram karma or something. I’m pretty sure that Kevin Samuels, unlike Caleb Hammer, didn’t attempt to make callers anonymous. Which is exactly the reason why Caleb does it -> to prevent people shilling their own stuff on the show. It takes all sorts, I guess.
In closing, I would like to thank Caleb for saying the quite part out loud. That takes cojones and he’s got them. This fits with my previous worldview and therefore I rest my case.