I love reality TV. It’s so entertaining, and it satisfies our curiosity on human behavior while also providing endless crazy drama and gossip, without actually impacting our own lives. Whenever I get hooked on a new reality TV show, I ask myself, why are humans so fascinated by drama? This could be linked to morbid curiosity, the phenomenon that human beings tend to seek out information about dangerous, taboo or unpleasant subjects. Since these shows are “reality,” they’re even more interesting because we get to observe real human beings navigating these crazy situations. But where do we draw the line between entertaining to cruel?
Let’s start with one of my favorite TV shows of all time, “Big Brother,” which is a reality competition show where 16 strangers are stuck in a house for three months, and each week one participant is sent home until there’s only one left. It’s just like “Survivor,” but instead of being on an island, you’re inside a house. The craziest part of the show is something called the live feeds. That’s when the 90+ cameras around the house record the houseguests live, 24/7 and viewers can log on and watch them whenever they want during the three months of the show. Now, like almost all reality TV, is this a crazy concept that is completely fascinating? Yes! Is it also really creepy? Also yes. Even though participants of the show are aware of the live feeds and choose to be on show anyways, it does feel extremely invasive for everyone in the world to be able to watch these people all hours of the day. Even when they’re sleeping, eating, brushing their teeth and sharing about their personal lives.
Another popular type of reality TV show are all of the romance shows. “The Bachelor,” “Love is Blind,” “Love Island,” “Too Hot to Handle” and countless more. Reality TV thrives off of drama and these types of shows feel like a calculated simulation designed to create as many broken hearts as possible. As entertaining as 25 women going after one man is, it really just feels like a disaster for everyone involved. That’s the general concession for almost all of these shows, the concept feels so wild and crazy you have to watch, but the root of each show is usually inherently toxic.
“Love on the spectrum” is a relatively new series that follows individuals on the autism spectrum navigating all things love and romance. The Netflix series is extremely popular, however there are a lot of mixed reviews on the ethics of the show, with some viewers finding it inspiring, and others exploitative. Viewers who are in favor of the show argue that it offers autistic individuals a platform to pursue relationships and debunk stereotypes about being on the autism spectrum. Common critiques of those in contrast to the series are that it portrays autistic adults as children, and only casts a specific type of individual. My personal opinion is the world of dating is complicated and awkward enough as is, and having a production team film your first date and air it to millions of people (not to mention many of the people featured on the show have never even been on a first date before) is always going to feel a little disheartening to me.
There are countless other reality shows to discuss, but the recent drop of “Reality Check” on Netflix, a documentary discussing the problematic past of “America’s Next Top Model,” seemed fitting to bring it up. “America’s Next Top Model” was a reality competition show where aspiring models would live together and compete for a modeling contract. There were several problematic issues that came as a result of this show. To name a few, there was intense shaming, physical and mental strain, sexual misconduct and controversial photoshoots such as posing as different races, modeling as dead people and a homeless themed shoot where real unhoused people were showcased in the background. When we see shows like this that are so controversial, I sometimes have to stop and ask myself why. Why are humans so fascinated with drama and chaos, and where do we draw the line on how far we go for “entertainment?”
