This media hype is fake and very lucrative for the company that's hosting it. This is all based around the fact that the company forces the contestants to sign a form that states that they are aware that they might die or be raped etc and that the company is not responsible however, they are still fully subject to Russian laws. Ie, the company has absolved itself of all serious responsibilities due to the contestants being in a hostile environment - it is not a "real life Hunger Games" nor some gladiatorial game -if any contestant does anything illegal, they will be prosecuted accordingly by the Russian authorities and, the company is not liable.