Genealogy will have a presence at the 2011 Emmys, but you'll have to look for it. Last year, Top Chef surprised even those associated with the series when it snapped the seven-year winning streak of The Amazing Race in the reality competition category. This year, Bravo's Top Chef is trying again with an Ellis Island-based episode entitled, "Give Me Your Huddled Masses"
The competition is tough, but this genealogist will be holding her breath since I had the privilege of researching the family histories of the all-star chef-testants for this episode. Turns out that learning about your roots is a terrific source of inspiration and all the chefs cooked their hearts out.But at the risk of being greedy, I'd love to see even an even more conspicuous genealogical presence next year. It's no secret that we in the U.S. frequently borrow show concepts from our British friends, where family history programming has been on the upswing for the past half a dozen years. Lisa Kudrow, for instance, imported celebrity-centered Who Do You Think You Are? after catching it in her hotel room in Ireland one evening. Heritage-based series in the U.K. are so popular that viewers there will soon be treated to a game show called Guess the Relative. Whether anyone will feel compelled to bring this latest offering across the pond remains to be seen, but it's no accident that NBC (Who Do You Think You Are?), PBS (Faces of America, African American Lives, etc.) and OWN (Searching For . . .) are all getting in the act - and that's not counting shows with family history undertones such as History Detectives, Antiques Roadshow, and the recent rash of stuff-related programs (Buried Treasure, Pickers, Pawn Stars, Cash 'n' Cari, etc.).Is anyone else seeing a trend here? We've seen the waves of design and cooking shows, and I think it might just be genealogy's turn next (Who Do You Think You Are? in 2012, perhaps?). But until then, I'll be watching on Sunday night and rooting for Top Chef!Full disclosure: I've worked on several of these programs, wrote the companion book for Who Do You Think You Are?, and have been a long-time fan of Top Chef, so don't pretend to be neutral!