this is "nightline." >> juju: tonight, bethenny frankel, one of the most famous stars of the "real housewives" franchise now taking on reality tv. >> are you biting the hand that fed you? >> that hand didn't feed me. deserves to be bitten. it's time. >> juju: the business magnate and tiktok star leading a

revolution. >> i don't want one thing, i want to be respected. >> juju: fighting for change in the industry. >> it's "game of thrones." killing or buying kill the. >> juju: destination unknown. the latest craze hitting the travel industry, surprise vacations. >> oh, you're going on a trip, where? you're like, i have no idea. >> juju: pack your bags, head to the airport, and then -- >> we have our envelope that has our destination. okay, it says "no peeking." >> juju: would you trust someone else to book your vacation? ♪ vicks vapostick provides soothing, non-medicated vicks vapors. easy to apply for the whole family. vicks vapostick. and try vicks vaposhower for steamy vicks vapors. the all-in-one and done symptom relief of mucinex is delivered fast with doordash, so you don't have to leave the couch. oof! that was fast. mucinex. available on doordash. it's comeback season.

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♪ >> juju: thanks for joining us. another look at the reckoning in the world of reality television led by bethenny frankel, the former real housewife of new york city saying reality stardom comes at a high price. she's speaking out on what she says has to change. >> hi! hi, baby. >> oh my god, no barking for you. do you want to see where the magic happens? >> absolutely. >> reporter: we're inside the palace with the once-rahning queen of reality tv. >> this is the glam room. >> juju: bethenny frankel, the grande dame of "the real housewives of new york" has had a busy retirement since leaving reality tv.

it's exactly how i imagined. >> really? yay. >> juju: perfectly organized, perfectly curated. trained as a chef, she's become a lucrative tiktok food critics. >> have you ever tried cottage cheese and caviar? >> juju: and beauty influencer, exposing the bargain jewels from the pricey duds. >> some beauty products that are at the level, this is excellent. you put your phone here. i tried every hilo foundation this side of the mississippi. look at this side, looks like this side, the expensive looks like the cheap. 15 million views. >> juju: 1.5 million followers. you tell it like it is, unfiltered. that's always been your brand. >> even to say it's a brand feels not honest. >> juju: if somebody said, i'm thinking of signing up for a reality show, what would you say? >> they think it's going to be the fun next chapter. it could put you in a detrimental situation. >> juju: is that the price of

fame? >> it might be. >> reporter: "real housewives," perhaps no one more famous than breathny frankel. after nearly two decades in the reality game, 400 episodes across four networks, she leveraged reality tv fame, or infamy, and launched an empire. one of her most famous products, skinny girl margarita. >> the margarita you can trust. >> reporter: she's essentially an elder statesman of the genre. now trying to launch a revolution. the so-called reality reckoning. >> reality television exploits affairs, bankruptcy, falling off the wagon, saying something inappropriate, risking cancelation every single time the camera goes on. >> juju: you called it the reality reckoning? >> yes. it was okay to do things that we said, how is that okay? >> juju: this isn't about you vie fog money? >> i haven't asked for one thing. i don't want one thing. i want to be respected.

i'm going to change the entertainment industry. i myself have generated millions and millions of dollars in advertising and online impressions, being on reality tv, and have never made a single residual. >> juju: and other reality stars are rallying, too. leah mcsweeney from "the real housewives of new york" and nick thompson and jeremy hartwell, "love is blind." they say the chaos that makes these shows addictive comes at a high cost to their real lives. >> this group of talent is the most overworked, overexploited, and least-compensated. there's no group that has a greater risk. >> they're clearly being exploited. exploiting the reality tv star is the point of the show, but they are absolutely signing up for that. these people want to be on tv. >> the benefit is people on reality shows, it's become a reality show career for people. >> it's "game of thrones." killing or being killed.

there is no middle. there is no gray. gray are women that become friends or women that become fired. >> watching things like that normalizes bad behavior. these shows normalize substance abuse, they normal it's physical violence with the catfights that break out, it normalizes emotionally abusive behaviors. >> juju: should would argue that behavior is exactly the thrill of reality tv. and some fans wonder, would changing the industry kill the genre? a lot of people think, well, are you biting the hand that fed you? >> that hand didn't feed me, we fed each other. that hand that didn't feed me deserves to be bitten. it's time. >> juju: bethany's trademark brashness helped spark her television career in 2005 on the martha stewart spinoff of "the apprentice." >> you're looking for a star, someone who has total potential. >> juju: she parlayed that into a role on the original cast of "the real housewives of new york." >> i want to be a household

name. a modern, healthy martha stewart. >> juju: her unfiltered persona a ratings bonanza for bravo for years. >> mention it all. >> may my heart are your shelter -- >> juju: her wedding in 2010 at the time was the highest-rated event bravo had ever broadcast. >> i went through a ten-year, horrific divorce. that marriage is being exploited and monetized. and sold to so many different entities. >> juju: early on, she knew nothing about business. in her first contract, she agreed to a season-long salary of $7,250 and no residuals. >> i know that my content is all over the world. that i did 15 years ago before i knew there would be a peacock streamer or any streamers or gifs or memes or anything, youtube, social media. so we signed our lives away, not realizing where it would be

distributed for decades to come. >> juju: the idea of residuals is every time your episode plays again, you get a little tiny bit more money. the more popular your show is, the more it's going to get played again. rick shownstein says the old ways are outdated. >> a person who comes on a show in the first instance is not given residuals. and i bet at the start of reality television, nobody thought that was strange. the industry has changed. the technology has changed. so it does create a new landscape. those original contracts will still be enforced according to their terms. they have to be renegotiated or amended by the parties if the parties want to change them. >> juju: bethany managed to strike gold during her time on the show. >> i've never been great at contracts but i've always been

good at concepts. i agreed to the money but crossed out where they could take a percentage of my future business. little did i know i was the only one who crossed that part out. really cashed out big-time. >> juju: that savvy move allowed her to keep all the reportedly $100 million payout from her sale of skinnygirl in 2011. the now 53-year-old single mom was living her best life in her cozy suburban home when the writers and actors in hollywood went on strike. what is it that makes labor issues so hot right now? >> there was a big thing in society about exploitation overall. people just are starting to open their eyes and realize what's okay and what's not okay. reality television needs a systemic overhaul and a governor. and possibly a union. i was just talking about the strike in general that was going on. >> you have to think about your work as work. you have to think about the fact

that you are being exploited, that your conditions could be better, and that somebody has the power to make your conditions better. >> a lot of these entry-level reality show contracts don't pay very much at all. surprisingly little. and i think the performers are saying, that's not right, we should be paid more. and if it takes a union to get us that, then that's what we want to do. >> juju: "page six" showed the moment when andy cohen, host and executive producer of "the real housewives" franchise, was asked about the reality reckoning. >> we need to talk about reality reckoning and bethenny frankel. >> no, i don't want to talk about that. what i think is, i live in the joy that these shows bring people. and i think we all do. >> juju: you were good friends with andy cohen. he literally made you a star. >> he didn't make me a star. he made himself a star on the

backs of all of these women. i'm sure i've surprised and disappointed andy cohen. and he really was a big fan of mine as a housewife. andy knows i'm right on so many levels, otherwise he wouldn't all of a sudden be making this whole franchise about joy. >> reporter: "impact" reached out to andy cohen. his team declined to comment. how much do you think the industry has responded to you? >> i think that bravo is now seeing it very clearly. they're making a lot of changes. not just bravo. this is the entire entertainment industry. they've awakened. no matter what, change has been made and will continue to be made. >> juju: you can stream the full episode of "impact by nightline: reality reckoning" on hulu. meet travelers who left all the details to chance. it's surprise vacation time. ote. i prep without pills. with apretude, a prescription medicine used to reduce the risk of hiv without daily prep pills.

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welcome back. let's take another look at a new travel trend for trusting tourists, mystery vacations. from puddle jumpers to global excursions, wanderers willing to put their faith in specialized travel agencies, going places they never imagined. here's abc's ashan singh. >> reporter: what if you could go on a vacation like this? one catch. you have no idea where you're headed. companies are now offering a new way to get away. >> for me, i think it's just, why not have someone else do it? why not surprise yourself? >> reporter: erika silverman and lexie marchbank are young professionals living in new york

city. in four weeks, they could be anywhere in the country. >> we have no idea where we're going. it's a surprise vacation. >> really excited to kind of, "a," not plan anything, because all i do is plan things. >> reporter: the two are going on a surprise vacation, paying the company pack up and go to not tell them where they're going. this trend is a growing part of the travel industry. companies offering surprise trips, saying they've seen demand for their services explode post-covid. pack up and go sends over 7,000 travelers a year around the coun country. how are you explaining it to people at work? "oh, i'm going on vacation." "fun, where are you going?" >> actually, it's fun to say that. "you're going on a trip? where are you going?" "i have no idea, i'll find out when i go." >> reporter: what is your budget going in? >> the recommended budget for two travelers is $1,700. sticking to that. >> reporter: pack up and go has clients fill out a comprehensive form. >> when you travel what do you prioritize? >> definitely food and dining. >> reporter: laying out

everything they wouldn't and wouldn't want for their dream trip. >> we have a real person who is looking to see where this traveler has been recently, where they visit frequently, what they like to do, dietary restrictions, hobbies and interests. we book from it there. >> maybe a week before our trip, we'll get an envelope in the mail that has our destinations and recommended itineraries. then go to the airport and open the envelope and find out where we're going. >> reporter: you know each other well. who is going to have the harder time not opening the envelope for that week? >> me. i'm the person that reads what happens in tv shows. >> reporter: oh, come on. >> ready for the trip? >> i am, so excited. >> reporter: two weeks later, after packing for somewhere, they arrived at the airport ready for the big reveal. >> we have our envelope. from pack up and go. it has our destination. okay, it says "no peeking." ready?

whoo! yay! oh my god, yay! >> reporter: i've a short flight, arriving in nashville. ♪ aka, music city. ready to explore. >> we're going to end up in the wild. >> yes, probably. >> reporter: the day's events, visiting the country music hall of fame. >> oh, whoa. >> reporter: a must-see for music lover erika. and taking in nashville's iconic broadway strip. ♪ home of the late-night honky tonks. but that late night didn't stop them from a 13-mile bike tour in the morning. their trip, a much-needed break from daily life. for others, only a life-changing vacation will do. >> for me, when i travel, there has to be meaning behind it.

so absolutely soul-searching, finding meaning. >> reporter: astor spangler books a trip with companies that book trips to death defying places with a hefty price tag. >> i had a weird childhood fantasy of being on my own, isolated, middle of nowhere. i really felt this, i don't know, calling on my life that i was going to go places where nobody had ever been before. >> reporter: the texas mother of two sent on an 11 high day journey into the at tas mountains of morocco. there were some days that were mentally tough? >> at the very outset of the second day, i had to do this scramble up a pretty steep, rocky cliff thing. whoo. i was cold and numb when i started, and i was sweating by the time i got to the top. >> reporter: to pay the 13k price tag, she started a gofundme and sold her plasma as a last-ditch money-making effort. she says it was all worth it. >> for the first time in about

ten years, something inside of me started -- it's like my heart started beating again. >> reporter: but not everyone walks away feeling so good. for michael wade and taylor diedrich, that $3,000 surprise was unwelcome. when they signed up for a surprise vacation using a different company, they thought they'd listed all the places they didn't want to go. >> we got to the airport, we're sitting in the parking garage, i open it up, a sheet of paper with a picture of one of the main buildings of austin, texas. "austin" with exclamation marks. i shut it and i said, are you sure you didn't list this as a place we didn't want to go? >> reporter: it said austin with eight exclamation points? >> i said, "i don't want to go." >> reporter: the scum kept an open mind. >> we had a wine and barbecue tour scheduled by them. we ended up making really, really good friends with everyone on our tour. now we've gone to tennessee with

them. >> reporter: even an unexpected envelope managing to turn serendipitous. whether the cliffs of morocco or the bars of nashville or a place you've already been. whether you know where you're going or not. at the end of the day, it's still a vacation. >> there are so few times in our lives as adults that we are genuinely surprised. in a good way. and having something as fun as a vacation that you're already so excited about and already looking forward to and amplifying that by just adding one more element of an anticipation i think is really, really exciting for a lot of travelers. >> juju: our thanks to ashan. when we come back, times square getting ready to ring in 2024. ugh, this guy again... pops! ay son! ya got a little somethin' on yuh face. needed a quick shave. quick shave? respect the process! it ain't my dad's razor, dad, it's from gillettelabs. gillette...labs?

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♪ >> juju: finally tonight, new york city preparing for its biggest night of the year. >> two, one -- >> juju: a flurry of activity as the city gets ready to ring in 2024. visitors are arriving from every corner of the globe and new york city is expecting 1 million people to gather at the crossroads of the world to watch that ball drop. today, a major moment in preps as the number 4 was lifted into place in anticipation of the big night. dick clark's new year's rockin' eve with ryan seacrest 2024 will feature performances from megan the central on, jelly roll, sabrina carpenter, and tyla on abc at 8:00 p.m. eastern. we'll all be tuning in. that's "nightline." see you right back here same

time tomorrow. thanks for staying up with us. good night, america.