There has been a lot of controversy over the past
year saying that reality television has been manipulated in order to get
more people to watch their show. Andy Dehnart is a television critic and
journalist who has followed most of this distortion over the past year. HGTV
features a show called House Hunters where
families and people go out and search for new homes because they are tired of
their old ones. One individual posted on a blog saying that the show is heavily
staged because she already had a house she bought last minute before the show.
Then HGTV had to scramble and pretend like the family was touring a house for
sale when in reality it was actually her friends and families houses that were
being staged! To me, this is pretty funny about how they staged her own
families’ houses to pretend like she was buying them. Others might argue that
this is corrupt for reality TV and that they don’t want to watch some family
tour a house that was not ever for sale.
The name “Reality TV” can
bring a lot of different views and perspectives to the viewers and to the cast
members. For example, cast members who are competing for money can actually
become wealthy and famous by building off their success and popularity. Others
can get a lot of hate mail, bringing them down, reducing their popularity, and
ultimately losing their jobs. We the viewers can also be affected. “The
Deadliest Catch” was and still is a popular Reality TV show that depicts the
harsh and gruesome life fisherman faced in the Alaskan Ocean. Recently one of
the captains of the ships passed away and the producers had to watch how
carefully they broadcasted because it can shape peoples views about society. I
think we should all think twice when watching television because anything that
happens on it can be altered to fit peoples specific views on the world.
Many TV shows craft
people’s reality. Chef Ramsay is a man that goes into hurting food business’s
and yells at them to make them better cooks. Ramsay features in the U.K version
of “Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares” and the Fox version of “Kitchen Nightmares.”
The difference between the two is that producers and Ramsay put a lot more effort into creating conflict
in order to construct excitement in the viewers. To me personally, I have no opinion
on the manipulation of Reality TV shows because I don’t really have time to
watch them. I am more of an ESPN kind of guy. But viewers who watch these kinds
of shows are often furious because they are lied to about what actually
happened behind the scenes.
Another point people argue
today is the unnecessary manipulation in Reality TV. Some networks actually do
show people’s real reactions and emotions in real situations while others have
artificial contexts to make people believe this is actually happening. Whale Wars, CBS’ Survivor, and Bravos’ Top
Chef are a few shows that change reality to make their reality into TV
shows. I mean think about it if you were being followed by a bunch of camera
men on a island for a TV show you would totally express your emotions in a
different way for the sake of television viewers. That is just what get when
you watch reality TV. Producers are very tricky people. Like I said I am not a fan of it but others are. I say if
you want to watch reality shows, enjoy it, but also think about what else is
going on behind the scenes.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.reddit.com/r/videos/comments/1vp9zo/arguably_the_best_the_most_ridiculous_2_minutes/
This was one of the most ridiculous things that I have ever seen on anything ever. This is so fake, I highly suggest everyone watch it. Its on reddit and you just click the link above. It really shows how reality tv is altered just for the drama factor. The whole irony is that this is from the television program Trutv. At the end of all its shows are the, “some events are dramatized.” This means that they are events that have been acted out, just for the show. This is how pawn stars gets some really weird people.
I've definitely come across clips of South Beach Tow before and I couldn't stop laughing because it was so stupid. It's very obvious that it's not real, but I think the reason why some people find it so funny is because there's always that question of "is this actually real?" that no one really wants to ask out loud the first time they see something like this. People need to realize that no reality show is 100% real. Most people act differently around cameras and of course a lot of reality TV shows are scripted because the producers want to gain more viewers. A lot of the things that happen in shows like Jersey Shore are scripted because they’re things that the producers believe the audience would love to see and they want to create that drama that the show is famous for, keeping the audience entertained.
Deletehttp://www.eonline.com/news/495706/audrina-patridge-admits-some-of-the-hills-was-fake-producers-wouldn-t-let-me-leave-until-i-fought-with-kristin-cavallari
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with they author that reality TV is manipulated to create better ratings and to have a better TV show. Many stars from old shows have admitted to it and even people that try out for shows realize the process is manipulated. When The Hills ended they caught the public off guard by zooming out of a Hollywood set which caused lots of speculations about the show. Every fan of the show was questioning whether it was real or fake. At first the stars were very closed lipped about it but as the years went on they started sharing about what was actually real or fake. In the article I found Audrina Patridge and Kristen Cavallari both opened up about how the show started off pretty real and as it became more popular then it all change. The producers of the show saw an opportunity and jumped on it. They created a cultural phenomenon with The Hills because people were so drawn to the stars and their relatable problems. So as it became more and more well known the producers would set up fake fights, fake relationships and many other scenarios to keep everyone watching. Finding out how fake it was caught so many people off guard because of how real the show came across. The Hills is just one of many examples. We learned American Idol looks for certain kinds of people to get ratings and in hope of producing the next big pop stars. Other MTV shows are known to be completely fake or half real and half scripted. Producers know what people want to watch and what will bring in ratings. Manipulating the cast members is all-apart of the game. They also film and edit things a certain way so we can feel a certain way about certain people on the show. The producers twist everything so we see it how they want us to see it. Reality TV is all about focusing on “real situations” but they reality of it is that it a lot more manipulated then viewers realize.
This really made me think of how reality tv has changed drastically over time, not only the content but the way the producers produce it. I agree that producers are only trying to make the show more fitting for the time but when people find out their watching a fake show, it changes everything. It almost feels like your being lied to and ultimately that is what producers are doing indirectly. I love the reference to the Hills and how the show started off real but took the road to being fake. This compares the new/old theme in that producers are only trying to keep up with us and their way of doing so is altering reality instead of letting things just happen. Most people now can tell whether a reality show is influencing/forcing people to say and do things to create drama which I think is making reality TV shows unrealistic and manipulated. I completely agree with everything you said, that reality is supposed to be authentic instead of one person making up a situation that grabs the viewers attention.
Delete
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlAPEPvryyE
This is also rather interesting. It demonstrates why this man thinks that American Idol is fake. I have always known that they had rigged who they thought America would vote for in the end, but what I never noticed is how the judges do look at the director before making the decisions. I also never thought about just how flawed they system is. America votes in the order of who they think was the best that week. If. What this means is that even though the second best wasn’t the worst, they still could go home. Please watch if you have time!
Your comment makes me think of last week in class when that video of the "military" man on American Idol was shown. That man lied his way through the show in order to give the judges, and the producers, what they wanted - a good story. We as Americans like seeing those less fortunate flourish in shoes like American Idol. The producers have obviously fed off of this idea season after season. They put the sob stories through while even better singers get sent home. We as viewers don't always know about the exact instances of manipulation in every "reality" show that we watch. Because reality television has been around for a while now, I think we all have a brief understanding about what goes on but for the most part, we don't care. If its interesting and keeps our attention, we'll watch.
DeleteI don't really care for reality shows either, so I agree to that. BUt also, manipulation,idk, it all seems like sooo much work for one show. I guess the tv producers are just doing their best to please what's "in" right now or what society wants, but you also have to realize that society is really downgrading. (In my opinion anyways) We put on the dumbest shows and get entertainment out of honey boo boo, seriously? What is wrong with us? Manipulate if you must, but someone needs to save people before all of our brains turn to nothing from the zero benefits we're getting from these shows.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you on the manipulation part. Manipulation is so much work for one single show but better yet the producers want to make more money so maybe they are somewhat manipulating it. They want to make their show the best they can so they could possible manipulate situations to make their show seem more important. Our society just doesn't seem to realize good shows. I think its crazy how people find enjoyment out of stupid reality shows. There are good ones but some of them are just plain out stupid. Before we know it our society will change because of reality TV because it is changing people and not for the better.
Deletehttp://www.cnn.com/2011/10/27/showbiz/tv/good-reality-tv-berger/
ReplyDeleteThe story does provide an interesting perspective on how reality tv comes together. I ended up finding a link to an article that literally has a formula for how to create good reality television. Which got me to thinking… If there can be a formula to good "reality" television, then is it really, truly, "reality" television? In essence, the thought of true reality television would be an organic, free-flowing sequence of events in daily life that plays itself out to be enjoyable. So the fact that producers need to alter scenarios, cast members, and generate attention grabbing moments means that we should probably create a different name for reality television.
http://www.rd.com/slideshows/13-secrets-reality-tv-show-producers-wont-tell-you/#slideshow=slide14
ReplyDeleteThis article talks about how reality tv producers don't want us to know the truth about their shows. In many shows the facts are hidden, they don't want you to know about budgets, actors change their personalities, and even change their life stories to get chosen for shows. I think that this completely takes away from the significance of reality tv shows. People change their whole life stories and personalities just so they can can get better ratings and make themselves more relatable to the viewers of their show. In my opinion reality tv shows just manipulate the viewers into thinking that they can relate to the cast in order to make more money and add to their fan base.
First of all, I think reality TV is stupid. What sane person cares enough to watch a show dedicated to random families and their lives? NO ONE! That is why producers probably have to manipulate the truth, and stage events that happen, to make these "people" more interesting. I don't think it is necessarily right for the producers to do this, but they've got to do something to draw in viewers. If you're stupid enough to watch reality TV, you should know that most of it probably isn't genuine. Just keep in mind, it's all to make money and for your entertainment, so who cares if it is true? Most movies you watch aren't real!
ReplyDeleteI think you made some really good points. Most people are on reality shows because they have something that stands out about them. If it was just a show about a typical family, no one would want to watch it because it is boring. As reality TV shows go on, producers have to do things to keep the audience interested. People aren’t going to want to watch the same thing week after week. People watch these shows because of the drama they entail. No drama equals no money. Reality TV shows these days aren’t actual reality. They are just people pretending to be someone a lot more interesting than they really are in order to make some money. I really think we need to go back to the shows of the 90s and early 2000s.
DeleteThere is one major argument against this concept. There are plenty of instances where people do not mind when shows are staged. Often, there are times where individuals might prefer that shows are mutated and altered to the viewer’s enjoyment. However, it remains true that the perspectives of the viewers is highly altered by the change of media and shows by the producers. The audience across the world is easily swayed by images on a screen if presented the right way. This is a highly depressing but very true concept. Many people will believe what they see on TV, and the fact that the producers are highly capable of making things look convincing fuels this highly. They can pay good money to hire good actors, and make everything all the more convincing, and grasp the audience’s disposition in the palm of their hand. This makes the topic rather dark, shedding light on this manipulative manifestation of the modern media production system.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2795955/posts
ReplyDeleteThis article has some very valid points on how reality t.v. distorts the real world. I completely agree that this shows are distorted to be full of drama. Producers will do anything to get more viewers. The more drama and fighting there is the more people will watch. It definitely is an effective method because I have fallen victim to these drama factors. Though I do sometimes enjoy reality shows they really are a bad influence on society. As more reality shows are being produced the more foolish and ridiculous they become. Reality shows do not seem like reality shows anymore. They are getting more and more unrealistic only displaying large dramatizations. Producers are not the only ones that manipulate the images presented in the shows. Like Ryan said, the media plays a huge role on the messages being conveyed. We as an audience are always being fooled when we watch these shows.
I totally agree with you on pretty much all of your points. Reality shows have changed in the last five years, and they probably are going to keep changing. I think it’s pretty obvious that not everything you see on a reality TV show is real. To me, it’s almost sad that the producers change so many details of shows. They constantly want more and more viewers, and really will do anything to get them. While they have to work with their cast, they always want more drama and probably cause some of the drama themselves. I think an important part about watching reality TV is knowing that it’s not really real. Maybe someone has a story that’s similar to yours or that you can relate to, or maybe it’s just a fabrication. At the end of the day, I think a question you should ask yourself is: would you still connect with that person even if you knew the truth?
DeleteI agree with this article, when Duck Dynasty first came out my family and I were hooked. But when allegations came out saying that it was scripted I started to not like it as much and stopped watching.
ReplyDelete