Fascinated by the reality of someone else's life, our television shows have made a complete transformation over the past 18 years. When I was a youth, the big thing was sitcoms. I can recall having an entire lineup of sitcoms that would determine what I would do during the evening on particular nights. Then in 1992, the MTV reality show, Real World created a trend that has only gotten more popular over the years. Amongst the popular reality shows of 2010 include Keeping up with the Kardashians, The Ultimate Fighter, Hell’s Kitchen, Bad Girls Club, and Project Runway.
The thinking behind these realities shows is simple. Take what many of the viewer’s believe to be regular run-of-the-mill people, put them in front of a camera, and document their day to day activities as it relates to the plot of the show. For spice, a lot of these shows become drama filled as alcohol is provided. You know what they say about alcohol, it has a way of bringing out the truth in individuals and the television networks use this factor to its advantage as these inebriated people make fools of themselves in front of the world.
Perhaps I am too harsh, but I cannot cosign the ignorance that I have witnessed in a lot of these shows. All of these shows are not drama laden. I am a fan of shows such as Top Chef, but I am not fascinated by the Kardashians or do I care to see drunken females on the Bab Girls Club, a show that does not even have a true purpose.
The influence of television spoken about in chapter three has never been clearer. The article “The Tribe Has Spoken” echoes many of my sentiments. The success of past reality shows have created spin offs, huge advertising dollars, and network saving shows. Addictive and nothing short of a controlled lack of substance, I will continue to watch documentaries, and educational television, and hope that the rest of the countries sees the shameless acts promoted in reality television and wake up as well.
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