These two articles focused mainly on how British television focuses solely on class relations, and how spoiled people actually are today. Shows such as Nanny 911 or Super Nanny are shows that create shame and guilt for the parents that cannot discipline or handle their children. Also, these nannies often come from Britain, and they are magically able to change the children's habits and make the parents better parents. Also, shows like Honey, We're Killing the Kids cause shame and guilt for parents that are feeding their children horrible things and causing their obesity themselves. All of these shows then offer rules and advice for the parents to follow to help change the lifestyles of the parents and children. However, how long after the nannies or nutritionists leave do the changes stay? How long do the children behave before they are back to their ways of misbehaving? I think that this is a flaw in the construction of reality for these shows. There is no way that one little intervention with a nanny will permanently change your parenting habits or your children's behavior. These are definitely not accurate depictions of reality.
In Frontier House, people are put through the hardships of life before electricity and all of the pamperings we are used to today. There are crazy restrictions put on these people, but they are in fact reality of how people once lived. For example, there was no toilet paper to use,
and women could not use any type of feminine products. The interesting thing about this show is that even though people were forbidden to have relationships outside the cast, people often made deals with the crew and could essentially "cheat" and receive luxuries such as steaks or a mattress. An interesting quote from this article says, "While reality television certainly bears some resemblance to a documentary format, there are several very important distinctions. Foremost is the fact that while the documetary can be said to prsent itself as the "truth," the reality show is more concerned with the "authentic." This means that often documentary films present the account of an event, and a reality television show is more interested in a social character. This is very true it seems. For example, how do people get cast on the Real World? They embody a certain person that the producer wants. For example, on the present season of the Real World, Mike was cast as the bisexual male. This would essentially cause drama in the house, which the producer could not turn down. Therefore, throughout the show, Mike had a certain persona to exemplify.
and women could not use any type of feminine products. The interesting thing about this show is that even though people were forbidden to have relationships outside the cast, people often made deals with the crew and could essentially "cheat" and receive luxuries such as steaks or a mattress. An interesting quote from this article says, "While reality television certainly bears some resemblance to a documentary format, there are several very important distinctions. Foremost is the fact that while the documetary can be said to prsent itself as the "truth," the reality show is more concerned with the "authentic." This means that often documentary films present the account of an event, and a reality television show is more interested in a social character. This is very true it seems. For example, how do people get cast on the Real World? They embody a certain person that the producer wants. For example, on the present season of the Real World, Mike was cast as the bisexual male. This would essentially cause drama in the house, which the producer could not turn down. Therefore, throughout the show, Mike had a certain persona to exemplify.
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