The Reality of Reality TV

Julie Trautner, Student Writer

The false reality of reality TV shows is damaging to today’s society as this type of TV puts out harmful stereotypes of people and could be considered as unethical. The viewers of reality TV shows have climbed throughout the years and these viewers are watching TV that they are being tricked into believing it is real life, but truth is most of the time these shows can be scripted in a way to put out false representations of people. This not only harms the people’s representation on the shows, but also mentally affects the viewers as these shows can make viewers see themselves and others differently than what they actually are.

Reality TV can be fun to watch. Mrs. Godshall, a reality TV viewer and film teacher at PHS, says she enjoys watching these types of shows because it’s a, “Glimpse into a whole different world about other people’s lives.” Godshall also says reality TV can be positive as some viewers can, “learn competition and sportsmanship.” Godshall also enjoys shows like Great British Bake Off on Netflix. Emily Ruddy, student and regular reality TV viewer, says that this type of TV is so enjoyable because, “it’s almost more relatable than regular TV.”

The matter of the fact is, not all reality television is reality. From a film perspective Godshall says, “Absolutely understand how things are edited just for the show.” The directors of these shows can portray a person to look like someone that is completely different from their actual selves just to fit a stereotype they want in the show. Jersey Shore, a popular reality TV show, “caricatured Italian-Americans,” said Gonchar in a recent article about the controversial show. This show rose in popularity throughout the previous decade in America and dramatically affected many people’s views on Italian-Americans. This also stereotyped citizens who live in New Jersey and how they live, despite their ethnic background. Jersey Shore gave the unfair and false stereotype of being rude and loud to Italian-Americans.

As many reality TV shows continue to pop up it is important for us as viewers to realize that even though it is reality TV, it might not necessarily be real. It’s always important to differentiate the real from the fake when watching reality TV. Viewers should be on the look-out for false or over exaggerated stereotypes, and make sure they do not interfere with how they view a group of people in reality.