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May. 16th, 2005 12:16 pmSo, I have this love-hate relationship with reality television. If asked my opinion of it, I'll probably say that I hate it, because what is generally thought of as reality television is not my cup of tea (but to each their own and all). However, let it be known that there is a good deal of reality television that I do, in fact, enjoy very much. Currently, The Deadliest Catch is one of my favorite shows on television. So I tried to break reality television down into it's basic types to see if I could make sense of what it is that I do and don't like.
Reality television: Television that portrays interactions between people and their environment for entertainment purposes. There are two major categories of reality television: Documentary and Staged.
1. Documentary: Shows in which the events being recorded are not staged ("are going to happen anyway") and are being recorded to document these events. In this type of show, the events or people themselves are inherently interesting.
There are some shows that are hard to categorize with these guidelines. For instance, American Chopper I have listed as a pure documentary because they're going to be building bikes regardless of that camera. I do get the feeling, however, that there's a lot of mugging for the camera that's not normally there, and there's certainly a level of fame that the show has added to the company. So I don't know. But Mikey Rules.
Using these categories that I've created, I can say that there are two types that I like the most, the Pure Documentary form, and to a much lesser degree, the Staged Improvement variety. There are exceptions, however.
What changes would you make to my categories? Where does your favorite show fall? As I don't watch many shows outside of my categories, I could have a completely wrong read on some of the shows I listed.
Reality television: Television that portrays interactions between people and their environment for entertainment purposes. There are two major categories of reality television: Documentary and Staged.
1. Documentary: Shows in which the events being recorded are not staged ("are going to happen anyway") and are being recorded to document these events. In this type of show, the events or people themselves are inherently interesting.
1.1. Pure Documentary: Documents actual events that are happening in real life, with little or no effect from the presence of the camera. Examples: The Deadliest Catch, Cops, American Chopper.2. Staged Reality: Show in which the events or environment is artificial to make for more engaging viewing. In this type of show, the people and events themselves are often of less interest than their reaction to the environment and situations.
1.2. Pseudo-Documentary: Documents events happening in real life, but in which the camera has (or appears to have) an effect on the people being filmed, or in which the camera adds a degree of fame that affects the events. Examples: The Osbournes, The Anna Nicole Show.
1.3. Unintended Documentary: Events are documented as they happen, often without the intention of wide broadcast. Examples: World's Most Dangerous Police Chases, When Animals Attack
2.1. Faux-Documentary: Shows in which people are put into an unusual and/or uncomfortable environment or situation, and then filmed purely to see their reaction to this environment. It has many elements of documentary television, except that the environment is staged. Examples: The Real World
2.2. Game-Show Reality: Shows in which people are put into an unusual environment in order to win a prize. Most examples of this type are elimination tournaments, where contestants are eliminated from the show in order to determine the winner.2.2.1. Best-Man-Wins: Contestants do their best in the event and a judge or event performance determines the winner. Contestants are usually somewhat friendly with each other and do not attempt to (or are not permitted to, either by rule or by circumstance) sabotage the performance of others. Examples: American Idol, The Amazing Race (?)2.3. Improvement: Shows in which the "goal" is to provide a service to a person or group of people which ostensibly improves their life. Examples: Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, Extreme Makeover, Trading Spaces
2.2.2. Sabotage: Contestants scheme and sabotage to win, often forming tenuous alliances with others. The contestants themselves often determine who gets eliminated, though sometimes a judge has the final determination. Examples: Survivor, The Apprentice, The Bachelor, Big Brother
There are some shows that are hard to categorize with these guidelines. For instance, American Chopper I have listed as a pure documentary because they're going to be building bikes regardless of that camera. I do get the feeling, however, that there's a lot of mugging for the camera that's not normally there, and there's certainly a level of fame that the show has added to the company. So I don't know. But Mikey Rules.
Using these categories that I've created, I can say that there are two types that I like the most, the Pure Documentary form, and to a much lesser degree, the Staged Improvement variety. There are exceptions, however.
What changes would you make to my categories? Where does your favorite show fall? As I don't watch many shows outside of my categories, I could have a completely wrong read on some of the shows I listed.
