by Nicole Hogsett

Created on: May 04, 2009

When asking if reality TV helps people reach instant celebrity status the film "The Truman Show" comes to mind. The Truman Show is the story of a man, played by Jim Carrey, who doesn't know his life is a TV show. Every situation he finds himself in, every moment of his life is manipulated by producers and aired for the country to see. Several scenes in the film show his legions of fans, wearing T-shirts and clutching pillows with Truman's face embedded on them.

While the movie, which was made in 1998, was ahead of its time, it showcased the effects of a reality show on its subject before the reality craze took over. Nowadays it seems like every show on prime time TV is a reality show; from America's Next Top Model to the Apprentice, it could be Survivor or Dancing with the Stars, The Bachelor or the Biggest Loser, and this is especially true in cable TV. Bravo, for example, has made a name for itself with reality shows like Project Runway, Top Chef and the Real Housewives series (currently the show documents the lives of privileged women living in Orange County, New York, Atlanta and New Jersey). But does being on a reality TV show help people attain celebrity status. The answer is it depends on the show.

The two channels that have created the most instant reality celebrities have been VH1 and MTV. VH1 has thrived by reviving the careers of Flava Flav, Brett Michaels, and Christopher Knight, by giving them each their own somewhat trashy reality show the station has also given reality shows to the rejects of both Flava Flav and Brett Michaels love-inspired shows, celebrities in rehab and Brooke Hogan. While giving a seemingly washed-up celebrity a second chance at fame is easy (Dancing with the Stars and Celebrity Apprentice also do), MTV did the seemingly impossible; made nobodies into celebrities just for being themselves.

In the summer of 2004 an MTV camera crew documents the lives of several privileged teenagers in Laguna Beach and in 2006 followed the show's rising star and voice of the series, Lauren Conrad, to The Hills. Lauren Conrad is the only reality star who is comparable to Truman, in that every moment of her life has been captured on film, except that she chose to live her life in front of cameras.

Five seasons later, as the show becomes more and more manipulated and predictable, each of the four main "characters" have become celebrities on their own. Conrad has done guests stints on shows like Family Guy and Greek, as well as starting her own clothing

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