I was perusing Hacker News and came across an incredible article: “How to Hire Fake Friends and Family”.

It’s a captivating interview with the CEO of Family Romance, an 8 year old company with a staff of 800 actors (infant to elderly) who play roles in their clients lives. I clicked, expecting a streamlined escort type service using AI and a slick mobile app. I thought, maybe they have an innovative way to do matchmaking in a mobile app. After all, I did find the story on Hacker News.

The CEO, 36 year old Ishii Yuichi, goes on to describe many examples of the roles he and his actors have filled over the years. Instead of tech knowledge, I left with a moral dilemma swirling around in my head.

Ishii formed the company after his friend, a single mom, asked him to pose as her child’s father to get him into an exclusive private school. To me, no big deal… I could see myself doing this for a friend.

His first major success was a doozy. A single mother hired Ishii to play father to her 12 year old daughter. 8 years later, Ishii is the only father the daughter has ever known. He is paid around $50/hour to spend time with her. He is to be very kind and never yells, per mother’s instruction. He uses the first and last name of her real father. He takes her out to dinner and sometimes amusement parks. He is prepared to walk her down the aisle at her wedding and act as grandfather to her children.

“More than Real” - Family Romance’s Motto

Check your pulse if that story doesn’t give you mixed feelings. So much deceit. He plays a role, it’s a job, it’s a lie. But he is there, taking her on outings. Kind, never yelling. Seriously, it’s better than many parents out there. Is it better/worse than having no father?

All the deceit makes the daughter seem like a fool. The lie seems bound to be revealed at some point. If the daughter grows up to be a happy individual, maybe she would understand if she ever found out the truth. Although her father was fake, he was truly there for emotional support. That matters, right?

There are several other stories mentioned. A man on his deathbed wants to live to see his grandchild be born, but he won’t make it. His daughter rented an infant for a day, presumably giving him immeasurable joy before passing.

It’s hard for me to say these behaviors are immoral. They seem to be providing such a valuable experience to their targets, I can’t call it wrong. Maybe, just maybe, it provides some insight into human nature and the world’s truth. Maybe it explains the fake news phenomena, and why we create echo chambers of like minded individuals and publications. Maybe it explains how social media will never be the truth, but a version of it, edited for our pleasure.

Do we really want to know the truth? Are we better off knowing it?