Reality Television

authorizedity goggle box has strong influence and damaging effects on our fiat. But lets face it, we fecundate on the drama. We love to absorb a nonher life other than our own. A unyielding with it comes the misconception of naive real numberism which distorts how one commits they substantiate to be gravel to gain fame or attention. Reality idiot box is bad for culture because it only when elevates money, beauty, and fame above other qualities by promoting inappropriate appearance such as bullying, casual sex, alcohol abuse and bad language. The media plays a major role in selling this trash in order to increase revenue.Reality tv has a strong impact on our society because it distorts our view of reality. It pollutes our minds with Knowledge, attitudes, values, and behavior that are influenced by exposure to reality television and deemed acceptable by society. Our culture serves up degradation as a human body of entertainment. Such shows incorporate inappropriate behavior such as bullying, scheming, and manipulating in order to get ahead or get the guy/girl. This is extremely wounding to children and teens because at this age they are fillking out their personal identities and starting to develop relationships with family, friends, and the opposite sex.They indentify with the media for whats cool and look up to these public figures for how they should act, dress, blether etc. One example how these shows are negative would be MTVs Parental control, where the rears are unhappy with their childs current choice of whom in which theyre dating. So, they get to choose who they assume would be a better choice for their child. While doing so, their current signifi fecest watches as they bf/gf go on a dates with their parents choices. This usu eachy results in disrespect and bad mouthing to the parents from the current bf/gf.Some of the stuff is appalling that is said and sexually suggested to a teen audience. Not only do these shows encourage inappropria teness it creates drama because drama creates attention that we all crave at times. Other shows spotlight this lavish lifestyle and commit the common person believe that they do can live this life if they model these infamous characters behavior and they in kindred manner can receive stardom for random careless acts. It mainly bases stardom on physical appearance and how far you go awaying go for the prize whether it be 100,000 or the rich husband.It organises us all superficial, materialistic and really unrealistic. do in love in 8 hebdomads, give me a break. But its entertaining and does suck us in. The contestants on these shows contribute to the ideology of agonistical elements and stereotyping over working. What kid would deficiency to go to school if he could party all day and have a rich bf gf and receive fame for it as well. I think we all seek a nonher unrealistic lifestyle and these reality shows are giving our youth the message that if they act according they w hitethorn too receive fame.Although, such shows demonstrate negative values ans are corrupting our youth and perception on things, the media is making money and doesnt see these shows as negative only a positive as stage to their bank account. The media has definitely altered the baseline of civility because money rules all things. The cost for these shows and their meaning are nonhing but cheap. According to a recent article by Laurie Hibberd, she suggests cost has much to do with it. Reality shows cost an clean of 400,00 to find and gain up to 2 million for a dramatic series (Hibberd2002. Its the less expensive option and ratings sky high , why wouldnt they keep these drama on the air. They whitethorn lack moral and values but big companies are not twainered by this only bothered by financial gain. Also big companies and organizations back these productions up with service or merchandise. Their only motive is to market their products and services, not to improve quality of p rograms. For instance, a clothing label may give out merchandise hoping this may promote their brand. If the reality stars are wearing it, the kids will want to wear it as well.They dont care what else the show may promote as long as its promoting their brand and resulting in an increase in sales. Reality television I believe has such a negative impact on society because it makes us believe that we can see ourselves on tv. That if we fit the visibility that we too may receive stardom. But on the same not it makes us believe that our lives arent normal and maybe even boring which may even cause more drama in our life. Also, the medias interest in making money is a contributing detailor to wht such behavior these shows represent are coming into the norm.Reality TelevisionIn the year 1992 a new idea was disclosed to the States and it was called reality television. MTV produced a show called, The Real World that had seven strangers living in a house together and had e verything they did filmed. After many failed attempts at trying to make this reality trend ravish on, CBS launched subsister, which pioneered the way for all reality shows to follow in the next ten. It was a show about mint battling it out in ii separate tribes to their marbles end in the jungle and it spread like wildfire across the States. subsister premiere debuted to 28 million viewers and is still on today, a decade and 21 seasons later (McCraley). Reality television did not have the power to tip and kick the bucket an epizootic until producers began to use clever marketing strategies to bring Survivor to the mass of America. It has been almost twenty years since MTV offset printing attempted to air The Real World with hopes of creating a new type of television America would love. archetypical broadcasted in 1992 it is now the longest running show in MTVs history and is currently on its twenty-fifth season.It is credited with being the first reality television show aired but it was not the first to grasp America and change the way we watch television. Reality televisions first big tipping point came the night Survivor premiered in May of 2000 on CBS and producers were beyond ecstatic when receiving the numbers the next day of viewers that tuned in (Metz par. 1). An epidemic had begun and it was here to stay. The American Survivor was derived from the Swedish version of the same show but only the first season of Americas Survivor had the same format.Throughout the seasons the producers have added new twists, turns, and contests. The United States version of Survivor is produced by Mark Burnett and hosted by Jeff Probst (Metz par. 1). This one single show caught the eyes of millions of Americans and since past all of our basic channels have been flooded with what we call reality television. The format and concepts have changed drastically but there still seems to be a necessitate for reality television so producers will continue to come up with new ideas until America no longer seems to show interest.Reality television has become a constant target for controversy and complaints but seems to be one of those things we either love to hate or hate to love. Reality television that use to just be fun competition has turned into pregnant teenagers, partying Guidos, rich kids in Los Angeles or eight roommates all sleeping with each other in one house. Each one of these presents obvious controversy for the public eye but the producers do this for a reason. If there is nothing to talk about then no one will talk. The more buzz a producer can build about their show the more people will want to watch (King par. 2).Reality television producers seem to have a certain niche for stirring up as much debate and controversy as they can. As ridiculous as reality television shows have recently become with at least 6 different ones all involving competition of bake the perfect cake, Americans are what propel this industry. We continually watch them and keep their ratings up so they are beginning to take over other shows such as sitcoms and dramas. Some reality television shows are even getting signed for more seasons than non-reality shows are receiving. Survivor and The Real World being prime examples, both having over twenty seasons of airtime (Metz par. ).It is not a question of whether or not reality television is or is not an epidemic, it is a question of how did Survivor know to turn this industry around and make everyone fall in love with it. The gist of Survivor goes a little something like this the show starts with sixteen average Americans who are brought to a remote island to fend for themselves. The island is usually a very unforgiving place with no modern conveniences. The sixteen individuals are divided into two teams. Every few days, one of the teams gathers at a tribal council and votes soul off the island.You can gain immunity by winning the challenges, which are very fun and interesting to watch. Once a total of six people remain the tribes merge. After this, it is every person for him or herself. The last Survivor at the end wins one million dollars (Charkow). It is all about who will make just the right alliances and just the right enemies in order to take plateful the money. Over the past years connecting with people on common interests has become an historic aspect of living. Reality TV allows us to do just that we can watch a show Monday night and then have something to talk about the next day at work or school.We can have a common interest with someone without really having to like the same things. Curiosity also plays a role in our obsession with this trend, viewers will imagine themselves in these certain situations and think how they would react but the difference is the viewers get to watch from afar and not have any consequences for what they talent choose (Hotchkiss par. 2). Reality television has completely changed the entertainment industry in that it creates a fun way to foll ow these participants and since they are real people with real conflicts their lives matter to us.This seems to be one reason surrounding why reality television has become so captivating for America and just why it is undeniably here to stay for the long haul. So what scarcely did Survivor have that managed to captivate America and keep us here? Unpredictability with relatability (Crum). Each workweek there were these normal human beings performing risky tasks unknowing if they were going to be sent home the following week. Americans began to watch, found their favorite contestants, and had to stay to make sure they made it until the end. Survivor producers also knew when creating this show the factor of relatability would play a major role.By taking normal human beings that are not trained actors, viewers begin to realize they may personally know one of the contestants or at least know them through the six degrees of separation. so far if they do not somehow know a contestant th ere is always one that they can relate to and connect with. When a viewer has a personal connection in a show it makes them want to invest more and they are willing to dedicate an hour of their time each week to tune in and see how their favorites are doing (Yazbek). Producers and casting directors thrived off of this concept of relatability.Each and every contestant is different in some way that producers believe will reach a vast majority of viewers in America. If there is a contestant representing each main demographic there is at least one person for almost everyone to connect with and want to root for. Once the viewers lock in their favorites they religiously watch Survivor in order to check up and make sure their contestant is still in and surviving. This is what helped Survivor manage to tip the reality trend (McCraley). The casting directors and producers knew exactly what to look for in the contestants they choose and they chose perfectly.America originally tuned in for Sur vivors first premiere because they did not know what to expect from these ordinary people getting their own television show and Survivors marketing team created a hype that was able to draw in over 28 million viewers for the first time (Metz par. 1). Dr. Kathleen King, who is a motivational keynote speaker, believes that Survivor uses their contestants as characters as a marketing strategy. If situations cant be resolved in a timely manner, people grow frustrated and bored with them. Our brain starts telling us, through our emotions, that it is time to move on.For a show to be successful, it has to introduce a parade of situations, just like real life would. So, how does a show keep us engaged in between situations? What keeps us tuned in? The characters . Characters are what we connect to. Characters engage us at a completely different level than situations. Situations are an intellectual challenge. Characters create ablaze bonds. We care what happens to them (King). This caring, this connection, provides the emotional overtones that keep the situations of Survivor consistently interesting.Americans instantly fell in love with this nail-biting reality show as soon as it made its debut. From the commencement ceremony producers created characters that they knew America would fall in love with, each for different reasons. Although Survivor is not scripted certain teams are paired together and certain scenes may be edited in hopes of causing a stir with viewers. Producers create good and bad controversy to evoke emotions from their viewers. Once you are able to put at the heartstrings of your viewers and have them emotionally involved with your characters you can create a true bond (Morrison par. ). Survivor made viewers fall in love with certain characters so when they were backstabbed or voted off they felt emotions for them. They would continue to watch so they knew exactly how their season would end and who took the winning spot of someone they wished woul d have won or stuck with their favorites until they would win (Hotchkiss par. 2). This level of emotional connection created a stickiness factor that helped Survivor stay with its viewers. One more reason Survivor has lasted so long and continually intrigued viewers is they way it is shot.A reality shows segment producers or story editors usually assemble storyboards and shooting scripts, which are important tools for shaping the direction of the show. In the TV sitcom and drama world, these people would be known as writers. Unlike writers, the Writers Guild of America does generally not recognize them and so they are not union employees. This distinction could be seen as a disservice to the segment producers and story editors, but it benefits the show in that it lowers production costs and it helps preserve the idea that the shows are real and unscripted.It also allows reality shows to keep on rolling when a writer strike hits, like it did in fall 2007. Many reality show staffers h ave contested the distinction in ongoing court cases since 2005 (Poniewozik par. 2). Reality shows typically do not have scripts, but there is often a shooting script or an outline that details aspects of an episode or part of the show. For example, it can set up a specific challenge for the contestants on Survivor. A shooting script could also create conflict between some of the participants by union specific people as roommates or partners.Producers create shooting scripts with viewers in mind thinking about what they might like to see and what would make them stay tuned. In extreme cases, a shooting script might include a storyboard, which is a visual representation of the concept that physically illustrates what will occur in a scene (Metz par. 2). Ultimately, reality producers and editors have a lot of control over what happens on the show, just by the sheer fact that they have put the people together in certain situations, and they are controlling what footage gets aired and what does not.If Survivor were just a 24/7 television camera on contestants living in the jungle viewers would get bored. Producers pick and choose the best material and content to air because obviously America does not want to watch strangers sleeping or eating their food, they want to see conflict, emotion, and turmoil. If it were not for Survivor we would never know if some other show would have had the power to tip the reality television trend.Thanks to Survivor, its stickiness factor, and its relatability we will never have to worry about that. Survivor paved the way for the majority of Americas favorite television shows we watch today and opened doors for a new format of television programming. There is no way to tell how long reality television is here to stay but at the rate it is going, it seems like it will be putting up a fight until America stops watching. After all, reality television would not have already lasted this long if it wasnt a survivor.