Sitcoms and reality television programming

Amazing Race & Two and a Half Men

The Amazing Race and Two and a Half Men: Reflections of American Culture

Perhaps almost all people are aware of the effect that media, particularly the television, has on us. Since its introduction in the 1930s, it has had a great impact on American society that in the late 1990s, that on the average, American homes spent more than seven hours a day watching television. (Stephens, "History of Television") The programs we see in television carry messages which we may not be consciously aware of. These programs might be about our culture, another nation's culture, or images which have been created out of knowledge and how certain people view the world. This paper will talk about two popular types of television programs -- reality TV shows and sitcoms. It will examine two shows currently being shown -- The Amazing Race 15, a reality TV show, and Two and a Half Men, a sitcom. What do these programs tell us about the state of American society? How do these television programs reflect American culture?

According to Ellis Godard, reality shows are footage of unscripted interactions which have been edited and broadcasted as a television series (73). Although the show is affected by a number of factors, Godard said that "the resulting naturalness of social interaction, including familiar patterns of confrontation" is what makes them reality shows (73). The Amazing Race 15 is one of the more popular reality shows wherein a two-person team with preexisting relationship with each other, compete with other teams in a race around the world. Along the race, teams are presented with challenges. Every team strives to arrive at pit stops first at the end of every leg of the race. The last team to arrive at the pit stop at the end of every leg is eliminated. Mirroring the American society which is composed of people of different races and lifestyles ("Getting Along in the U.S.: Some Customs and Culture Tips" 1), this show showcases Americans who come from different ethnicities, with different ages, and having a variety of relationships with their race partner. The teams currently competing who are composed of a father and son, best friends, teammates, dating couples, engaged couple, married couple, and brothers. There are students and working people as there are young and old. Some contestants are achievers, one being a Miss America title holder. Many excel in sports. There is also a team of gay brothers who in the latest episode has just told the other teams of their gender.

Every contestant in the show illustrates the individualism that the American people as a whole is known to be. In doing their tasks, every contest showcases their independence and self-reliance. They all care about winning and they keep trying until they finish a task. One would often hear a contestant motivate him or herself even at the difficult moments when they feel hopeless. No one wants to back out from a challenge and quit and it's as if, every contestant sees quitting as a shameful thing to do. Until the very end, they try with all their might. It seems to me that there are times when the one thing that keeps them going is the shame of quitting. As much as possible, the contestants want to finish the race in spite of the tough challenges that they've encountered.

In order to stay in the game, every contestant proves that they can surpass any challenge posted on them even though the challenges may make them look weird or require them to act silly. In the latest episode, they were required to wear a traditional Dutch costume. One type of challenge required contestants to swim across a cold body of water on a windy afternoon and play golf the way the locals do it. Most contestants endured this in their fight to stay in the game. Another challenge required the contestants to eat salted herring with onions after performing a Dutch folk dance. And even though the thought of eating the salted herring was revolting to one contestant, he still did so as he wanted to still be in the game. They have to overcome their fears and to ignore their discomforts in order to stay in the show.

I guess this is partly why people like watching this show; it shows people who are willing to do almost everything in order to stay in the game. The personalities of the contestants also contribute to why people continue to watch this show. I suppose the audience will relate to one or two teams and root for them. Other people will perhaps get interested in a team because of the way the contestants look or the way they approach the game with their personality. There are contestants who are really passionate about winning and one can't help but admire them. Meanwhile, there are other contestants who have personalities that are interesting to the viewers. One team composed of an interracial married couple is interesting because of their personalities.

Meanwhile, Two and a Half Men is one of the most successful sitcoms on TV. It stars Charlie, a bachelor who lives with his divorced brother, Alan, and underachieving nephew, Jake. Also in the show is the rich mother of Charlie and Alan and Charlie's girlfriend, Chelsea.