Bad boy from ‘The Hills’ gets his own advice column
Spencer Pratt, the boyfriend who everyone loves to hate on the hit MTV show “The Hills,” has a new advice column in “Radar” magazine called “Yo Spencer!”, and some CU students say they are not impressed.
His first column is on newsstands now in the April issue of “Radar.” It features three people who wrote to Pratt asking for advice with certain problems they are facing.
Michelle Boulanger, a senior psychology major, said she thinks that Pratt’s column could be received either well or badly.
“I would read it for entertainment value, but I wouldn’t read it for serious advice,” Boulanger said. “His success could go either way. It just depends on what people think.”
The magazine’s Editor in Chief Maer Roshan talked about why he gave Spencer his own advice column.
He released a statement saying, “Spencer is never afraid to speak his mind. When asking for advice, it’s good to have someone who will be brutally honest with you, and tell it like it is.”
The three people who wrote to Pratt for advice asked questions that ranged from smelly coworkers to family decisions. One question was even about threesomes.
After some CU students read Pratt’s column in “Radar,” they had many opinions.
Christina Flobeck, a sophomore pre-communications major, said she does not think he deserves his own column.
“He’s too unintelligent,” Flobeck said. “I don’t think he should have his own column. Its random, he’s a jerk on the show and his advice is too out there.”
Flobeck also said she wouldn’t ever go buy the magazine to read the column.
The only advice that Flobeck said she believes to be credible is Pratt’s answer to a person who asked how to stop his brother from enlisting in the army because he is terrified of him getting killed.
Pratt responded saying that the person needs to support their brother.
“The last thing he needs is to be on the battlefield thinking about how upset his family is,” Pratt said. “That kind of distraction could get him killed.”
Danielle Sandoval, a freshman open-option major, agreed with Flobeck, saying that Pratt gave good advice about the army, but she did not find it to be completely heartfelt.
“He probably made his response serious because it’s about war and you can’t joke about that,” Sandoval said.
Sandoval said she also thinks that his advice is amusing, but it is not real or nice.
“It’s kind of funny, but it’s not advice. I could go without reading it. I think he’s sexist, and kind of mean when he says to go buy air fresheners,” Sandoval said, referring to Pratt’s answer to the question about what to do about working next to someone who smells like “blue cheese.”
In his column, Pratt said to “buy a bunch of car air fresheners and scented candles and put them all over his desk when he’s at lunch.”
Another question to Pratt about a relationship sparked one CU student’s attention.
The question said, “I’ve been seeing this girl who’s not that bright, but she’s super hot. I think she wants something more, but I’m not ready to get serious. The thing is, she keeps saying she really wants to have a threesome. Is it worth sticking around?”
Christopher Deaton, a senior English major, said he does not think Pratt’s answer is serious enough, and that his answers scratch the surface.
In his response, Pratt said, “Sounds like you’ve got yourself a genie in a bottle. Of course you should stick around. Be clear about where you want the relationship to go, but, its like, what are you looking for besides a super hot girlfriend who’s really into threesomes?”
Deaton said he is not impressed with the advice.
“That’s kind of dumb advice,” Deaton said. “It seems perfect for the MTV audience watching crowd- so trite and superficial. It seems like the guy is asking for advice on an emotionally based problem and something deep, and Spencer isn’t sensitive to that. It wouldn’t even cross his mind that the guy might not want to share his girlfriend.”
Like many CU students, Deaton said he does not believe the column is worth reading.
“He’s a bad advice columnist,” Deaton said.
Contact Campus Press Staff Writer Melanie Cohn at Melanie.Cohn@colorado.edu.
