“Reality” Television
Author of Reality TV: Factual Entertainment and Television Audiences, Annette Hill, writes, "In the early stages of the genre, reality TV was associated with on-scene footages of law and order or emergency services; more recently, reality TV is associated with anything and everything, from people to pets, from birth to death" (Hill 41). Hill’s observations showcase how reality television evolved throughout time. Reality TV swept modern American society, especially during the start of the 21st century. The genre unsurprisingly found great success amongst a variety of viewers considering there seems to be a reality show for every imaginable subject. They come in many categories such as game shows, talent shows, dating shows, …show more content…
Reality programs continue to become more diverse, and more often than not, they depict minorities inaccurately which leads to dangerous stereotyping. Many shows provide insight into different cultures and ways of life which draws in lots of viewers. “Little People, Big World,” for example, follows a family with dwarfism, and “All American Muslim” shows life as a Muslim in the United States. Shows similar to these contain the potential to break certain stereotypes and end discrimination; however, the over dramatization that takes place encourages the stereotypes rather than diminishing them. Often times shows do this through manipulative editing and selective casting. Producer of “Dancing With The Stars” and various other popular shows, Troy DeVolld, did a series of interviews to reveal what many reality TV watchers already suspected. He explained that producers usually come up with an objective for the scenes, outlining and scripting them to a certain extent (Laurel). The genre relies on creating conflict for appealing TV which means producers purposely edit the contestants in a negative light. One example of this being racial stereotypes, particularly of African American women, which have been evident throughout reality television history. For example, in 2006, Ivonne Martinez Shepard, in her Masters Thesis at Iowa State University, emphasized how in “Survivor,” “The Amazing Race,” and other shows involving physical challenges, “Black women, often underrepresented, were shown as having strong obnoxious personalities that repel others” (Shepard). Inaccurate portrayals of African Americans, while prevalent in the surge of reality TV over ten years ago, still continue to be an issue today. Nearly a decade later, scholar Sheena Harris explored the issue in her 2015 novel: “Reality TV has become a battleground of stereotypes . . . and in this ever-expanding genre, Black women are
Author of Reality TV: Factual Entertainment and Television Audiences, Annette Hill, writes, "In the early stages of the genre, reality TV was associated with on-scene footages of law and order or emergency services; more recently, reality TV is associated with anything and everything, from people to pets, from birth to death" (Hill 41). Hill’s observations showcase how reality television evolved throughout time. Reality TV swept modern American society, especially during the start of the 21st century. The genre unsurprisingly found great success amongst a variety of viewers considering there seems to be a reality show for every imaginable subject. They come in many categories such as game shows, talent shows, dating shows, …show more content…
Reality programs continue to become more diverse, and more often than not, they depict minorities inaccurately which leads to dangerous stereotyping. Many shows provide insight into different cultures and ways of life which draws in lots of viewers. “Little People, Big World,” for example, follows a family with dwarfism, and “All American Muslim” shows life as a Muslim in the United States. Shows similar to these contain the potential to break certain stereotypes and end discrimination; however, the over dramatization that takes place encourages the stereotypes rather than diminishing them. Often times shows do this through manipulative editing and selective casting. Producer of “Dancing With The Stars” and various other popular shows, Troy DeVolld, did a series of interviews to reveal what many reality TV watchers already suspected. He explained that producers usually come up with an objective for the scenes, outlining and scripting them to a certain extent (Laurel). The genre relies on creating conflict for appealing TV which means producers purposely edit the contestants in a negative light. One example of this being racial stereotypes, particularly of African American women, which have been evident throughout reality television history. For example, in 2006, Ivonne Martinez Shepard, in her Masters Thesis at Iowa State University, emphasized how in “Survivor,” “The Amazing Race,” and other shows involving physical challenges, “Black women, often underrepresented, were shown as having strong obnoxious personalities that repel others” (Shepard). Inaccurate portrayals of African Americans, while prevalent in the surge of reality TV over ten years ago, still continue to be an issue today. Nearly a decade later, scholar Sheena Harris explored the issue in her 2015 novel: “Reality TV has become a battleground of stereotypes . . . and in this ever-expanding genre, Black women are