Just when Americans thought they had seen it all when it comes to reality television, CBS, the oldest-skewing network, has come up with a humdinger: "Kid Nation."

For 40 days in April and May, CBS sent 40 children, ages 8 to 15, to a former ghost town in New Mexico to build a society from scratch. With no access to their parents, not even by telephone, the children set up their own government, laws and society in front of reality television cameras. The goal, according to creator Tom Forman ("Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" and "Armed and Famous"), was for "kids to succeed where adults have failed."

But CBS, the network that got the reality ball rolling in 2000 with "Survivor," had more in mind when it decided to run this social experiment of sorts. Recognizing that ratings are not enough in the Internet age, President of Entertainment Nina Tassler had been craving water-cooler buzz for her network for a couple of seasons.

So Ghen Maynard, CBS' executive vice president of alternative programming, attempted to "wake up the attention" of kids with a program that allowed them to "identify with people of their own age," he said. "I thought it could be a way to try to get some attention on a broadcast level for a new kind of show, one that really put young kids to the test."

Attention has not been a problem for "Kid Nation," which premieres Sept. 19. On July 16, Television Week revealed that sources in the New Mexico Department of Labor claimed the children worked as many as 14 hours a day and were taken advantage of because of statutes on the books that protected theatrical and film productions from child labor restrictions.

That same week, CBS kept the children and parents away from the media during a news conference in which TV critics grilled Forman and the show's host about the legal, moral and ethical issues arising from their unconventional production. Of the 40 children, 12 are 10 or younger and only one is 15. Eighteen of the participants are girls.

"Who is ultimately responsible here, the network that dangles the $20,000 prize in front of these parents or the parents who have allowed or encouraged their children to move forward with this situation?" asked Matthew Smith, chairman of the Department of Communication at Wittenberg University in Ohio and editor of "Survivor Lessons: Essays on Communication and Reality Television."

CBS' stance is that the children were not employees of the network. Forman, a 34-year-old father of two, likens the experience to "going to summer camp" and says the children, like all reality-show stars, "were not working; they were participating" and set their own hours.

None was eliminated, and all were free to leave at any time. (In fact, a few did. A request to interview those participants was denied by CBS because of the potential for spoiling story lines.) During telephone interviews this week with four of the children after CBS announced the cast, the "pioneers" revealed they awoke about 6 a.m. to a bell on top of a hill and decided on their own when to turn in for the day. In the evenings, after cooking sometimes for "3 1/2 hours or something" on a wood-burning stove, the children relaxed in each other's bunk rooms or threw parties at the town saloon, where they could buy root beer.

"To say that these kids aren't working is absurd," said Mark Andrejevic, associate professor of communication studies at the University of Iowa and author of "Reality TV: The Work of Being Watched." "This is a smooth move that reality television has been able to make, and I think the only reason they get away with it is that they're trading on a history of documentary filmmaking. ... In any other industry, this would be called exploitation."

The children were paid a $5,000 stipend each, and some received other financial rewards for challenges, but parents interviewed said they had no knowledge there was the potential to earn $20,000 gold stars until the children returned. Producers had mentioned hypothetically during the interviews that the children might win products, such as iPods or computers.

"I didn't even ask that," said Peggy, the mother of 12-year-old Laurel of Boston. (CBS, which arranged the interviews, would not release the parents' last names to protect the privacy of the children.) "I don't think that she or I feel that she worked any of the time she was there. For her, it was just her normal everyday. She feels like it was summer camp. And I guess that would be a summer camp with cameras. This was a fun adventure for her."

Said Suzanne, the mother of 10-year-old Zachary of Miami Beach: "... I know that Zachary came home a stronger, more confident and more self-reliant child. So for me, the proof is in the pudding."

Forman auditioned thousands of children across the country before settling on 60 to be interviewed in Los Angeles with their parents. Producers held open casting calls but also searched for high-achievers, including winners of spelling bees and beauty pageants, presidents of student government, 4H Club leaders and honor society students.

The children interviewed said they had to rough it without electricity or running water, sleep on bed rolls on the floor, cook their own meals, clean the town, run businesses, survive on three changes of clothes and set up their own hours and rules. Although three said they worked harder than they ever had, all four said the most challenging aspect was getting used to being filmed constantly.

"When I heard about the idea in L.A., I thought it was great until I got there and there were cameras with me every minute of the day, and it got a little annoying at times," said Greg, 15, who was recruited by CBS through his involvement with the Reno Rodeo Association. "After a while, you got used to it. You know? You'd go to the outhouse and they'd wait for you outside and film you coming out."

With no eliminations — the hallmark of reality competitions — producers had to get creative in terms of the format. The "showdown" competitions assigned the children their status for three days, but the town reward at the end of each challenge was designed to bring them back together, Forman said.

"If you let 40 kids decide between a library or video arcade, what are they going to decide?" Forman said. "... It really got to what matters to kids and let them experience what it means to make decisions between immediate gratification and long-term consequences."