The Reality of Reality Television
The Reality of Reality Television Jacqueline Knudsen ENG122: English Composition II Jenna Fussell February 2, 2013
The Reality of Reality Television Have you ever set there watching your favorite reality television show and wondered what effects it could have on you, your family or your friends? Truth is most people do not think about the effects television shows can have before watching them or allowing their children to watch them. This paper will discuss rather reality television is real or fake, what the appeal of reality TV is, how reality television has changed television viewing habits, and the impact of reality television. Even though reality television can be inspirational, reality television can have a negative impact on people because it gives people unrealistic expectations, it has antifamily values, and it portrays a deceptive view of reality. One big question among people is how real is the reality television shows that we watch. It seems like reality TV shows are mostly real and the parts that are fake aren’t scripted so much as they are set up to happen. Producers do a lot of coaching in order to get things to turn out how they want. Once a show is done recording, producers take the raw footage and make it into a story, picking out a so called “villain” or bad guy in the process. Think about it, most reality shows have a bad guy. It is even possible for them to change what someone said completely. If you can’t see their lips while they are talking, you can’t actually be sure that’s what they said. (Seanbaby, 2012). J. Rupert Thompson, a director and producer whose credits include Big Brother and Fear Factor said “Certainly, reality TV is a very manipulated format where the basis of it is that real people are put into unreal situation to create a story.” (Ventre, 2009). Some reality shows are lying to viewers from beginning to end, however that is very rare.
The Reality of Reality Television Have you ever set there watching your favorite reality television show and wondered what effects it could have on you, your family or your friends? Truth is most people do not think about the effects television shows can have before watching them or allowing their children to watch them. This paper will discuss rather reality television is real or fake, what the appeal of reality TV is, how reality television has changed television viewing habits, and the impact of reality television. Even though reality television can be inspirational, reality television can have a negative impact on people because it gives people unrealistic expectations, it has antifamily values, and it portrays a deceptive view of reality. One big question among people is how real is the reality television shows that we watch. It seems like reality TV shows are mostly real and the parts that are fake aren’t scripted so much as they are set up to happen. Producers do a lot of coaching in order to get things to turn out how they want. Once a show is done recording, producers take the raw footage and make it into a story, picking out a so called “villain” or bad guy in the process. Think about it, most reality shows have a bad guy. It is even possible for them to change what someone said completely. If you can’t see their lips while they are talking, you can’t actually be sure that’s what they said. (Seanbaby, 2012). J. Rupert Thompson, a director and producer whose credits include Big Brother and Fear Factor said “Certainly, reality TV is a very manipulated format where the basis of it is that real people are put into unreal situation to create a story.” (Ventre, 2009). Some reality shows are lying to viewers from beginning to end, however that is very rare.
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