Ok, I admit it, I enjoy watching reality television. Not so much shows like Rock of Love, Mobile Home Disasters, and Jerry Springer, but shows more along the lines of Top Chef, Project Runway, and American Idol. I guess I just enjoy seeing how everyday people capitalize on their 15 minutes of fame. Given the success of reality shows over the past 5 years, I’m joined by millions of people in this guilty pleasure of glancing into the lives of others.
The widespread popularity of reality TV supports reality television as a form of pop culture. As stated on the website http://reality-tv-online.com/ (2007) reality TV shows are so popular because viewers are enticed by fame and fortune and we’re nosy and voyeuristic. I hate to admit that these things are true, but if we weren’t all of these things, reality TV wouldn’t be the success that it is today.
Reality television has been around for years in the form of shows like Maury, People’s Court, and Judge Judy. At the time, I don’t recall those shows even being referred to as reality TV. Not until reality TV crept into prime time did we start to hear negative comments about shows that didn’t need writers or actors. Prime time had typically been reserved for scripted shows, so the introduction of multiple reality shows during prime time viewing was met with concern about how reality TV would put writers and actors out of a job.
This concern didn’t stop the reality flood though. Not only were reality shows popping up on all networks, people were watching and supporting them. American Idol is one of the most popular reality TV shows and consistently pulls in impressive ratings. The premier of Season 8 this week was one of their lowest rated shows since they launched in 2004, yet it pulled in 30.1 million total viewers (Collins, 2009). That’s a lot of people sitting in front of their television to see previously unknown contestants try to sing their way into stardom.
In reality, (no pun intended) it turns out there’s room for everyone. Television viewers still support three different CSI shows and multiple Law and Order programs alongside reality TV. Not all scripted shows succeed, and neither do all reality shows (think Joe Schmo and Dog Eat Dog), but the continued success of shows like Survivor, Big Brother, and American Idol support the fact that reality TV is a pop culture phenomenon that’s going to be around for a while.
References
Collins, S. (2009, January 15). Ratings for ‘American Idol’ Season 8 premiere fall 10% below Season 7’s. Los Angeles Times Online. Retrieved January 17, 2009, from
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/tv/la-et-idolratings15-2009jan15,0,4907340.story
Why is reality TV so big? (2007). Retrieved January 17, 2009, from http://www.reality-tv-online.com/articles/why-is-reality-tv-so-bit.html
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Its Survivor for me and Amazing Race and Jon & Kate plus 8 for my wife. Insight into unscripted human interaction is fascinating. There will always be a demand for it. Whatever happened to the variety show, like Dean Martin, Sonny & Cher, and The Smothers Brothers? Hopefully someday they'll come back to supplement Idol.
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