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REALITY TV IS FANTASTIC

Why? The essence of reality TV's success is that its audience have so much contempt for it and with that hatred are utterly compelled to watch it. It is more than likely that it is the people writing on the 'No' side for this very argument, condemning Realty TV are the ones who watch it the most often. Reality TV makes us feel dirty and cheap and if it didn't we probably wouldn't bother tuning in. Never have so many watched TV with so little good to say about it!

How has Reality TV improved the quality of television shows? The answer to this is simple. It has brought about a buzz that has finally reminded viewers that there is something beyond sitcoms and dramas. This kind of TV is able to tell actual human stories. I'm not saying that these shows actually resemble a true reality or match the intelligence of a well-constructed fictional service but what they do is provide a feeling of communal experience. They provide characters that we can recognise, sympathise and connect which is something that hasn't been done since the likes of Fawlty Towers, Seinfeld or perhaps Friends (bar the UK version of The Office).
Reality TV is set up to provoke and, if you like, offend its viewers. It stirs opinion and debate amongst the public, again something which sitcom and drama cannot do. They make you pay attention and give you a say.
The recent success of The Office has been because it features characters who you would find in life, or on Reality TV. Everybody knows someone like David Brent. People want to watch somebody they can relate to.
At its best, Reality TV can provide a slice of life that is simply not there in a regular drama, more authentic than Tony Soprano or the latest subplot in ER. Just think of those people on American Idol, Big Brother or The Apprentice who share their life stories with the audience ranging from defiance to despair. These are REAL people are not just some actor who doesn't even know the emotions they are trying to portray.
To sum up, Reality TV brings stories that leave any judgment to us. They leave us not knowing whether to laugh or cry. It can be cringeworthy, it can be humiliating, it can be heartbreaking but thats reality and its great.

Learn more about this author, Marc Steel.
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