Controversy Regarding Reality Television and the Way

¶ … controversy regarding reality television and the way that it portrays society. As a social scientist, one needs to acknowledge that reality television is largely providing the masses with a fabricated version of the real world. Even with the fact that individuals shown on such programs appear to live their lives as if no one is actually watching them, the truth is that they are significantly influenced by the fact that they are filmed and they are thus inclined to put across behaviors they would not perform otherwise.

Reality television was especially effective from a sociological point-of-view during its early years, taking into account that it portrayed individuals in natural environments. PBS' 1973 show An American Family is a positive example of reality television because of how it documented the life of the Loud family. The show actually managed to provide viewers with important information concerning the family and concerning particular social relations between its members.

Economics played an important role in changing the way reality television looked as individuals shown on these programs came to be less 'real' and their behavior came to be more artificial in order for audiences to be more attracted to them. This meant that the basic idea of a reality television changed significantly as these shows practically came to be similar to soap operas.

Individuals watching reality television come to appreciate having a voyeuristic perspective on the lives of particular persons they are interested in. They are virtually seduced by these respective persons and some are even likely to identify with them as they consider a scenario in which them too became stars as a result of the world watching their lives and providing them with instant fame. The problem with certain reality shows is that they influence viewers to gain a wrong understanding of life and to be unable to really understand what it is all about as a consequence of trying to replicate behaviors they see on reality television.