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It's a very correct and positive decision by First Lady Michelle Obama to appear on Iron Chef America to promote healthy living. First of all, it's nothing new, and certainly not controversial about it in any way. There's a long history of First Ladies who've been seen on commercial and public TV programs to promote their specific causes.

In the early 1960s, Jackie Kennedy invited reporters and television cameras into the White House to show them historic rooms, portraits, sculpture and furnishings. During the tour, she encouraged Americans to preserve the country's national treasures. Additionally, while their husbands were in office, First Ladies Betty Ford and Nancy Reagan appeared on TV to talk about their causes, particularly advocacy against the spread of illegal drugs among American children.

Much earlier, during the Presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt in the 1940s and before the advent of home TV sets, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt was very active in appearing on the media of the time. Mrs. Roosevelt appeared on her own and other regular radio programs and wrote a daily newspaper column called My Day. While she never spoke out on political subjects in those media, she covered such subjects as supporting the troops in World War II, economies to practice in the home and advocating education. She was one of the earliest prominent public figures in America to express her desire for equal rights for all American citizens.

As with Mrs. Roosevelt, none of the First Ladies who've appeared on commercial TV programs since then have promoted their husband's political agendas. While they campaigned vigorously to get their husbands elected to the Presidency, once in the White House, they confined their TV and other media appearances to promote social issues.

Calling the TV program Iron Chef America a reality show may be stretching the term more than a bit. The commercial program is hosted by a well-known Chinese-American chef, who offers humor, family stories and cooking information. The program is not political nor in any other way controversial. On the other hand, most people consider reality shows to be actual or staged situations involving extreme, often violent, sports, police actions, hidden cameras and other questionable forms of entertainment. Iron Chef America does not fit that category at all.

Mrs. Obama, a highly-educated and intelligent woman, certainly has the right to appear on non-controversial TV programs such as Iron Chef America to promote healthy living for American citizens.

Learn more about this author, Ted Sherman.
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