The XX Factor

Russell Simmons’ Assistants Get a Reality Show

The ads are up for Oxygen’s new reality series Running Russell Simmons , which evidently follows Simmons’ five hot assistants as they rein in their carefree, eccentric, multimillionaire boss. The trailer (below) features such pro-woman moments as an assistant searching for Simmons at a rooftop party, grumbling “he was just up here,” and another explaining to Simmons, “it’s my job to worry.” It ends with a graphic of a third assistant running and calling after Simmons, who has his fingers in his ears. I’m tired of these crafted stories of career women “in charge”-the ones where being in charge means being a mother, a maid, and a balloon-handler in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade trying to keep a big bag of air from floating away.