The Lifetime channel is making it very clear that it's sick and tired of being a punchline B-list comediennes use when talking about what they do when they get dumped or are on their periods.

First the network sneakily snatched away Bravo's trendy reality program Project Runway. Now it's delving even deeper into the hip fashion game with a new original reality series, Blush: The Search for the Next Great Makeup Artist. Because culture just doesn't celebrate the useless but moneymaking fashion industry enough!

Yet despite its similarities to shows like Runway and Shear Genius, Blush also promises to be quite different—it's going to be much, much worse. That's because it's basically a goddamn unabashed infomercial.

This is what happens when everyone gets TiVo and can skip the commercials, dudes. You see, rather than have some product placement sprinkled throughout the show's six-episode season, as many television programs are wont to do anymore, Blush, which was developed with the help of Procter and Gamble, Max Factor's parent company, will be absolutely doused in Max Factor makeup like the cheap whore it is. If you want to watch the program, there's no way you'll be able to not watch the ads.

Mr. Lee, head of programming for IMG Global Media, said broadcast and cable networks' increased openness to allowing brands in on the creative process of their shows — particularly reality programming — has enabled [advertising agencies] to take leadership roles in the development process.
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Plus, the easier advertisers can make their case for having their own show, the better. "This is a makeup competition series, and you've got Max Factor. You don't have to stretch the creative process and put a square peg in a round hole," Mr. Lee said. "I think we've done a very good job of getting the message of our sponsor across without having to change one iota."

Max Factor will be integrated into "every element of the show," said Mr. Lee, from product integration to a branded makeup studio.

To clarify, companies are now paying to have entire show-like commercials created in their honor and then pawned off as entertainment to the American public. If this doesn't cause you to cancel your cable subscription, don't come crying to us when the Pepsi tanks come rolling down your block.