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A talk show tricked a teen into thinking she'd be reunited with her estranged mam

Teen singer-songwriter Autumn Allen hasn’t seen her mother since she was six years old.

AUTUMN ALLEN IS a 13-year-old American singer-songwriter who is living and working in Cambodia.

autumnallen YouTube YouTube

Last Sunday, she appeared on the Cambodian TV show Penh Chet Ort (Like It Or Not) as part of a segment for Mother’s Day.

The hosts told Allen that they had found her mother, whom the singer hasn’t seen since she left the US with her father at six years of age. An emotional Allen said it was “a dream come true” and shared some memories of her mother with the audience.

autmnallen YouTube YouTube

According to the Phnom Penh Post, after a long build-up, Allen’s ‘mother’ was revealed to be a local comedian dressed up in a wig.

dresswig

Watch Allen’s segment here:

Khmer TV Record 72 / YouTube

The presenters asked Allen if she really thought her mother would be on the show – she nervously giggled and said: “I don’t know.”

There was an immediate backlash to the ‘prank’ on social media, with viewers saying it was “brainless and heartless playing around with the mind” of a 13-year-old in that way.

A spokesman for the show admitted it was a “mistake” – they just wanted to “make [Allen] smile”, he said.

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Valerie Loftus
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