Reality TV is so popular and has acquired such a huge following of dedicated and loyal followers, who seem to love the real life scandals and drama that the contestants live through but really, how real is reality TV?
On The Amazing Race last year, Jonathan Baker savagely berated his wife Victoria Fuller and alienated fellow contestants and service workers around the globe. But Baker says his villainy was trumped up in the editing room. One episode showed him appearing to be kicked out of a cab after browbeating the driver. Really, Baker says, the driver had an accident and couldn't continue. "I got the worst rap of anyone in reality television ever."
Fox dating show Joe Millionaire, says producers doctored a scene in which a contestant went for a walk behind some trees with the show's bachelor, Evan Marriott, to make it seem as if they had oral sex. The producers added sound effects and captions, she says, and dubbed in a line--"It's better if we're lying down"--that she had said earlier in the day in a different context. "It couldn't have been more misrepresented and fictional if it had been completely scripted," she says.
Here is a quick video about the Reality of Reality TV!
Being On A Reality Show: How is 'reality' manipulated on reality TV?
So do you believe reality TV is really reality? Knowing that many shots are scripted and doctored does that affect why you would or wouldn't watch reality TV? Can you think of any other examples of where reality TV became anything but reality?
41 comments:
Reality TV is just like every sitcom but in a different format. They make it look like it is "life, unscripted" but it is just like any sitcom. They were very popular to start but now are just like the tired old sitcom format. We like(d) them because they were new and felt different but are the same as anything else. I don't think that it is wrong, but just something we have to consider.
Reality TV is real in the fact that that actors are real people. Other than that, nothing is as it seems. I've heard of multiple instances in which participants of reality shows have complained about being misrepresented in a show. The sad truth is that ultimately, everything and anything that gets put on the show is manipulated and decided by editors and producers.
For a one hour episode of any show, several hours of footage is shot. Producers pick and choose which scenes and scenarios to piece together, in whatever order they want, in order to convey a message they want. This is not reality, but it sells. That is why it continues to be popular, because even though it isn't real, it seems more real than a sitcom does and therefore people can connect more to the participants in the show.
I really think it depends on the show and what parts fo the reality show. I think some are ligitiment, but the vast majority are riged in some way. For example, American Idol's final 12 are ligitamitly eliminated by the call in votes from the audience, however I know fro a fact that when some one trys out to get on the show they do not select you by your talent of singing. I have a few friends that tried out for American idol who could sing far better than some of the people that get on the first few rounds of the show. So yeah, they are riged but do we care? It's entertaining.
I agree with Chris that Reality TV is only real because the actors are "just like everybody else." until they reach instant TV stardom. If I saw everything that I saw as truth, sure I'd be disappointed that it was manipulated, but we watch Reality TV because we like the drama. We like the competition. We have active imaginations and love evaluating what we would do in the same circumstances. Reality TV is entertainment. It's making lives of others more exciting. If someone followed you around for a week, they might have enough exciting footage for a 22 minute episode of something...but there would be a lot of editing involved. Reality TV wouldn't work if it was completely real. The producers know what works and they're successful because of it.
Reality TV is not reality, that's obvious, if it was it would be like the Truman Show. I can't even tell you how boring it would be to follow me around all day, yeah there are parts of my life that are interesting, but who would want to watch me do my homework or sleep. Reality TV ahs to be interesting and has to have the draw of fantasy that traditional sitcoms offer in order to get good ratings. In essence reality TV is what we wish reality was - an exciting, random adventure that culminates in you winning a lot of money - it helps to make us feel better that there is a reality like this out there. I think people can't be content to just lead a normal life and reality TV provides them a way to continue to live in a dream world under the guise of "reality".
I don't believe that reality TV is unscripted. If it was truly capturing "real life" it might not be as entertaining. Even if you try out for American Idol, you have to sign a contract agreeing to let FOX edit and show your audition in any way they like. We like reality TV because we can relate easier to some of the characters. It's easier to think, "What would I do in that situation?". We need to remember that these shows are manipulated and edited just like any other sitcom or drama.
This is a very interesting question. When reality TV first came out I really did believe that it was entirely real. As I have been exposed to more shows like Big Brother, Survivor, The Real World, Laguna Beach, and The Hills, I have come to the realization that these shows aren't always as real as they pretend to be.
Laguna Beach used to start every episode with a disclaimer that says "The people are real; the places are real; and the drama is real." After all, Laguna Beach had a secondary title of "The Real OC". For the entire first season I was a believer. The more I thought about it though, I realized that there is no way that you can really fit one person's reality into a half an hour television program that airs once a week. There are portions of their lives that aren't being shown because it would be impossible to fit everything in to that short of a period.
I believe that it is possible that the things that are seen in reality shows are a portion of reality but there is no way that producers of these shows can depict the entire reality of the situation.
I don't know that anyone is ever looking for "reality" when they are watching television. I think that holds especially true for reality TV shows.
I find it odd that people are so aghast when they find out that "Reality" shows are a bit staged!
You still get a good helping of schadenfreude that you can't get from a scripted show. And the producers of the more successful shows know it.
I loved this post. A girl I knew was in NYC when Michael Moore was filming Bowling for Columbine and he uses the same tactics, making it look unscripted when it's as fake as the days. I'm not one to believe reality tv is real, but for those poor saps who do...this is a good call.
I don't think anyone has ever believed that reality TV is real. Just as was mentioned in the video, letting a camera role in front of average people will produce some pretty boring footage. Clever editing, emotional music, and fabricated scenarios are necessary if anyone is expected to watch the show.
Reality TV isn't fooling anyone, but I don't think they're really trying to either. It's pretty transparent what's going on.
-Michael Williams
Of course reality television is anything but reality. Just take a step back and look at the common programs that people watch, none of the depict a realistic experience. I think most people who watch reality tv know this, but it doesn't seem to affect them. I'll admit to being sucked into reality tv, my roommates and I used to have bachelor nights where we would sit and watch The Bachelor, we would all get so into it and have our favorite girls and for an hour it felt like we were part of the show. That's what makes these types of shows successful, the hour while watching that you are totally enveloped in these fake lives of the people on screen, you don't have to worry about homework or your own relationship drama, everything disappears.
I'll be honest, I don't know much about reality T.V. But from the basic information that I do know and have seen. Reality T.V. is not real, they just call it reality T.V. it's kind of like having actors on an impromptu stage and calling it real life. It's not real. It's acting. So why are people complaining? Everyone knows it's just for show.
I am in the broadcast program and I know first-hand how easy it is to
edit excitement, to edit falsity and to ultimately edit ratings. I agree with Eurrka, I believed reality was real when it first came out, but this blog and many other rumors have convinced me that 'reality' may be more scripted than soap operas. ( I mean the fights are better!). I also think someone needs to investigate whether reality stars are being paid to say how real the experiences were on talk shows and in interviews after the show has aired.
I am in the broadcast program and I know first-hand how easy it is to
edit excitement, to edit falsity and to ultimately edit ratings. I agree with Eurrka, I believed reality was real when it first came out, but this blog and many other rumors have convinced me that 'reality' may be more scripted than soap operas. ( I mean the fights are better!). I also think someone needs to investigate whether reality stars are being paid to say how real the experiences were on talk shows and in interviews after the show has aired.
I think Reality TV is real to a certain extent. They are real people in real situations and problems.
But, of course, for ratings, the producers will doctor some scripts and add sounds and other effects that may be deceiving to add more drama and scandal to the show. It's kinda sad when Reality TV characters are misrepresented.
I think "the Hills" is a great example of this. There was a guy in one of my classes last semester from Laguna Beach, where another show called "Laguna Beach" was filmed that "The Hills" has now become a spinoff of...they followed a character from "Laguna Beach" to college and beyond. Anyways, this guy told me that his parents own a store in Laguna Beach that the girls on the show would often shop at. He explained that the camera and lighting crews had a detailed schedule of every location the girls would be at each week, and the crew would go to these locations hours before the girls would arrive to set up perfect lighting to make them look their best. While the show follows real people, the locations and interactions seem to be pre-planned. I have also heard rumors about the show that scenes are often refilmed. I guess my point is that sometimes I think people take reality shows for their face value only...and think everything on them is absolutely "real." I admit that I still watch "the Hills" often...but I think it's important to remember that even reality shows have their fair share of editing and planning.
Reality TV isn't real at all. Even if the characters are allowed to say and do what they want their situations are still manipulated. Reality TV goes to all different levels with "being real" as well. 'Survivor' may be scripted with lines said by Jeff (host) but the competition part of the show is fairly real. Then there are the MTV dating shows that try to pull off real/natural but are 100% scripted. I am guilty of watching a few reality TV shows, but it's not out of hand. I have a roommate that watches reality shows constantly and what was once cheesy and ridiculously fake has now become the norm. i don't think we can possibly expect reality TV to really be true.
i thought it was real in the beginning because we had shows like Big Brother that had live cameras 24/7 but after awhile, most shows got scripted and edited, and now it's just called reality tv but its name does not serve its title.
sorry i meant, its name does not serve its purpose :-)
Of course reality TV, is not reality... since when are all of us stuck on an island... same number of males and females... and able to pick who we spent the night with... sounds like a pretty passionate island, if you ask me... I love how the director/creator dude said that if you just put random people in front of a camera and filmed them it would be boring... because let's face it folks, that's why we are watching tv... because, most of our lives are boring, and what's happening on the tube is more exciting and entertaining. Reality TV is just a ploy to help the viewers connect with the characters on the program. The people on reality tv shows are just normal people. They are not celebrities, so they feel like "one of us", giving us a nice little feeling that such a thing could happen to us. Which makes me wonder... Would fear play a big factor on me...? Or would I be the weakest link...?
I think that we all know that reality shows are not true depictions of reality, but nonetheless, we still find ourselves getting sucked into these shows. We begin to identify with the contestants and pull for them. So the question is, if we know that these shows are not really "reality" then why are they so popular?
For the most part I don't believe Reality TV is real anymore than TV news is unbiased. The fact is all reality TV is dramatically edited to suit the producers. The sad part is that most of these shows have become more negative and rely on backstabbing between participants. I'd love to see a show that would put value on helping.
I don't believe much of reality tv at all. Every show is there to make money, so in that way reality tv is no different. Tv survives and thrives on advertising and sadly the way to make this money is to hype up everything that is thought to bring in viewers.
If you're that naive to think that all reality tv is real, then you should stop watching tv. One example that is totally blatant in it's attempt not to be reality tv, but says it is reality tv is The Hills. I can tell that the producers are the ones creating the drama. I bet deep down Lauren and Heidi are still friends. One example is when Lauren was in New York, she got a cab twice within a few hours, and for some reason the cab number was the same number both times. I wonder if that's a coincidence. All that being said, I still love reality tv, and I don't care that some of it is made up.
Of course reality TV does not represent reality. The people in them may not be professional actors, but producers and directors are still involved. Some reality shows are probably more real than others. But in the end does it really matter? Just like any other TV show we watch reality TV to be entertained, and reality shows deliver. The fact that it does not represent reality is something that should be kept in mind while watching reality shows though.
I think that "reality" TV is the reality that viewers want to see. We live in an infotainment society, where we want to believe that everything that happens in life is just that exciting. We want to think that people act a certain way. We want to think that people will do certain things, when in reality, the percentage of our society who will act in that way is small.
Reality TV is frustrating to me because I feel like I am being lied to. The Hills has come up a lot, and I also agree that shows like this are very far from "real life". It is not real when the producers feed them lines, and staging cues. Shows like The Hills and Laguna Beach aren't reality tv, but just another soap opera. Maybe we should start calling them by their appropriate name.
Reality TV is not evil. It's just fun, silly programing. I don't the appeal is, "oh, its real," but its real funny. We all know its not real and a lot of it is scripted, but the intrigue is where the line is drawn. Its hard for me to guess, but entertaining nonetheless.
Reality TV is just another form of entertainment. Whether it is real or fictional doesn't affect that people will watch it, because they perceive people are in realistic situations - or at the least, entertaining ones. I think as long as people realize a lot of reality TV is deceptive, then they can watch it all they want.
I think a lot of reality tv is manufactured. But just like Mike Cronin in that video says, really people do things they wouldn't normally because you put them into an environment like a challenge and they act different. I do agree though that a lot of times a character on a show can be misrepresented and that isn't right. I feel that it is misleading and if a show is obviously slanting a character I wouldn't personally want to watch it because it wouldn't be real at all.
My wife and I watch a ton of reality TV. We love how the majority of the shows are contest and we love to see how people will lower there standards and become posses over winning some small prize. Usually the people on the show are trashy people. But we know they are so fake. Especially on MTV and VH1. But we still like them.
i think it's false reality. i grew up in laguna beach and went to high school with the cast of the mtv reality show. being friends with them before the show started and later watching, there was a big difference. the drama and daily life of the teens was very embellished.
i think someone would be very ignorant to think that reality tv is actually "real." while we see the people in front of the camera, there are twice as many behind the camera telling them what to do, making editing decisions, and creating storylines out of nowhere. while i like reality tv sometimes, i always have to remind myself that nothing about it is actually real.
If reality television were real I would first feel very sorry for those individuals, and second worry what direction our society has gone. Because I know that to be entertained we need an exagerated lifestyle, or something interesting, I understand that it is not real, and it is not what our status is. Would I ever watch tv, only when it is on, and when I sit for five minutes to be appauled at the people that are actually out there. I don't think I've watch more than pieces of 5 episodes.
I don't even view "reality TV" as reality. I look at it like any other show, but it is more like improv. I enjoy some reality television, but this facade of reality dilemma is why I never rally get into reality shows. IT's entertaining when I happen across it, but I never seek it out.
I think of of reality tv as something between tv and reality. It seems to be a fake scenario or sometimes real scenario with real or only "half-fake" players. I'm not a huge fan of it unless it accomplishes something (as is the case with Amazing Race, etc.) like in a contest or if the people are interesting or funny to me as is the case with Viva La Bam, Wildboyz and Jackass.
I like some reality shows, but many are clearly fake. What surprises me is that people don't seem to mind that, "the hills" is the fakest reality show around. Editing will always alter the reality of things, from the news, books, movies and especially reality tv. I view it with skepticism and as entertainment.
I think that there are definitely different degrees of reality within reality tv, but for the most part it seems pretty scripted and i think that it is changing our society based on false pretenses. People think that other people's lives are the model of reality and try to alter their lives accordingly, making it nearly impossible to be satisfied with our own version of reality.
I think the cast in reality shows are real people that are selected carefully based on either their appearance (could be good or bad) and extreme personalities. Besides that, the show editors also exaggerated a lot of the situations to make it as dramatic as possible which will in catch more attention of the viewers
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