CBS encamped 40 kids in an abandoned New Mexico ghost town for more than a month. The kids performed on camera for more than 14 hours at a stretch, seven days a week, making their own meals.

They were filming during the school year, yet no studio teachers were present. They were working on a major television production, yet no parents were on the set.

The show is CBS' upcoming reality series "Kid Nation." When rivals first got wind of the concept, they declared the production an impossible endeavor: From a legal, labor, public relations and logistical standpoint, this show should never have worked.