US Weekly has a new cover story this week featuring a photo of “Jon & Kate Plus 8” dad Jon Gosselin in a car with another woman outside a bar at 2am. Jon and Kate Gosselin are the stars of a TLC reality show featuring their life in Pennsylvania with twin eight year-old girls and nearly five year-old sextuplets, three girls and three boys. Gosselin’s excuse for his early morning ride is weak – he says the woman wanted to drive his car. It would have been more convincing if he claimed she was his designated driver. Gosselin has a new car though, a white Nissan Z which retails at $37,000 and up:

The new issue of Us Weekly has shocking, exclusive pictures of the Jon & Kate Plus 8 dad leaving a club at 2 a.m. — with a mystery woman and without his wedding band

Jon Gosselin arrived at the club at 11:20 p.m. and by 2 a.m. “could barely walk” as he exited the less-public back entrance of Legends Lounge — near the family’s $1.3-million home in Wernersville, Pennsylvania — on April 18, a fellow partier tells Us Weekly.

The dad of 8 — kids are twins Madelyn and Cara, 8, and 5-year-old sextuplets, Aaden, Joel, Collin, Hannah, Leah and Alexis — was overheard yelling, “Hey, babe! Babe! Give me my jacket!” before climbing into his Nissan Nismo. (She complied.) As cameras began snapping, he panicked, urging his female friend to “get in the car!” before speeding off hastily — without even turning on the headlights.

See the ugliest star divorces of all time.

Where was his wife Kate — known for her insults and who famously once berated him for breathing on the show?

Nearly 2,000 miles away, promoting her book Eight Little Faces in Bellevue, Washington.

While TLC had no comment on the story or the couple’s marital status, Jon sent an emailed statement to Us.

“I went to Legends to speak to the owner. A friend of mine wanted to check out my car, so I let her drive it to her car,” he says. “Yes, I have female friends — but that is all she is. I’m not going to end my friendships just because I’m on TV.”

In February, the 32-year-old was spotted flirting with — and even attempting to kiss — coeds at Juniata College, multiple students confirm to Us Weekly. (He denied any wrongdoing.) He told one coed “he was getting divorced.” In the May Ladies Home Journal, he says, “I always thought I would be, like, 54 years old and marry a 19-year-old or something.”

[From US Magazine]

I don’t watch this show but I did catch some clips on YouTube to see what all the fuss is about. Kate can come across as bossy as people are pointing out in the comments on website Gosselins Without Pity and you can see how some would call Jon passive aggressive. They’re probably decent people, but it just seems like a bad idea in general to open your family up to the kind of scrutiny that comes along with a reality show. Many critics say that it risks the children’s safety and that it violates their privacy at a time when they’re not mature enough to make an informed decision about airing their life to the world. Others see it as a fun, harmless show about a family making it all work with so many young kids.

Something isn’t working for this couple though if Jon is out with young women in the middle of the night. He previously denied getting up to anything when he was photographed partying with co-eds in February. One time I could buy, but now that he’s been caught twice you kind of assume he’s got something on the side. If Jon and Kate do split up it’s going to be hard for all their kids. It almost doesn’t matter how much money they have now and how much help they can hire if their relationship falls apart partially as a result of their fame. Are these two the latest victims of the reality show curse? Do reality shows put unnecessary stress on a relationship, are people with weak relationships more likely to agree to a reality show or is it some painful combination of both?

Kate has a new book out, Eight Little Faces, that she’s promoting while her husband is out partying. She released her last book, the bestseller Multiple Bles8ings just last November.