In the past two months, Parker Somerville, a videographer for the website TMZ.com, transitioned from an average guy leading an ordinary life, to living in an extraordinary voyeuristic existence, and back again to the beginning. Simply put, it was a transition from reality to reality, with a two-week detour in reality television. Somerville was a former contestant on the CBS reality TV staple Big Brother, currently in its ninth installment. 
Evicted on Day 14, Somerville hoped to have another chance to play the game, but came in second in the special "America's Choice" poll to bring back a former HouseGuest (the poll results were eventually not used at all and nobody was brought back). Now freed from a three-week sequester, Somerville was interviewed by Wikinews reporter Mike Halterman and he discussed his thoughts on Big Brother, how he and his fellow HouseGuests were portrayed and received, and what he plans to do now that his experience is, for the most part, over.
Somerville will return to Big Brother on finale night in five weeks. Please check your local listings for time and channel. Big Brother airs on CBS in the United States, Global in Canada, and E4 in the United Kingdom.
Mike Halterman: So, you've been billed on the show as a paparazzi for TMZ.com. Tell us exactly what you do at your job. What was your most exciting work-related celebrity sighting?
MH: How much exposure did you have to Big Brother before you were selected to go on the show?
MH: Who influenced you to audition?
MH: In a previous interview I conducted with Canada's Next Top Model winner Andrea Muizelaar, she said that she believed reality shows cast people who are perhaps unstable, to make for better television. Do you feel that's true? 
MH: You were really not that thrilled when Jen, the "soulmate" the show picked for you, was in a previous outside relationship with fellow HouseGuest Ryan. What were you thinking when Jen revealed the news to you? 
MH: Also, Allison, Ryan's partner, was shown on the television broadcasts as being probably more angry than you were. Who do you think was more angry about the developments, you or Allison?
MH: You were involved in some of the most dramatic moments we've seen this season, including, but not limited to, you waking up the entire house to find the person who had talked behind your back. Do you think being that direct was a good strategy for your game play? Also, viewers of the show gathered that you were unhappy with the way Jen played the game, but do you believe some of your actions cost you the game as well?
MH: How do you feel about Jen telling other HouseGuests that her real-life boyfriend Ryan was racist to ensure that she stayed in the game? Did you think that behavior crossed a line?
MH: You had said after leaving the house that you felt Matt didn't keep his word to you as far as vetoing your nomination. Now that you've watched past footage, do you still believe Matt wronged you?
MH: What did you really want to say to Jen after you both got evicted so early in the game? You were very quiet when Julie Chen interviewed both of you...
MH: This season, Big Brother made the press rather negatively compared to past seasons, specifically with incidents like HouseGuest Adam being fired from his job for a comment about "retards," Amanda being taunted that she should hang herself with a noose "just like her father," and James performing in multiple gay pornography videos. What are your thoughts about all of these these events? When do you think the other HouseGuests will find out about James' past in pornography, if they find out at all? How do you think Chelsia will react?
MH: You were kept in sequester for a few weeks, and only recently allowed to return to your normal life. How does it feel being recognized as "that guy from the Big Brother show"?
MH: What options, do you feel, are open to you now that your stint on reality TV is over? Are you going to continue your job at TMZ, or do you hope to break into acting like previous HouseGuests have?
MH: You were in the Big Brother house for all of 14 days. With that TV experience behind you, would you ever consider doing another reality TV show again?
MH: Who would you hang out with after the show ends, and who would you rather not see again? 
MH: There are eight contestants left from the original sixteen. Who are you rooting for to win, and why?
MH: And finally, do you believe the Big Brother "twist" this season (both the "soulmate" pairings and Jen and Ryan's outside relationship) "robbed" you of winning the game? 

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'Big Brother' contestant Parker Somerville sounds off about the show and his aspirations