How Reality TV has Affected Society

Throughout history, there have been many different genres of television shows. A genre that has affected society the most is Reality TV. Reality Television has changed television because it tells society about things like sex and violence. These have not been put on air in the past. But some situations they air are not exactly as real as it may look. For example, even though all the dangerous, extreme moves wrestlers use may look real, it is staged and scripted. Also many writers like to incorporate racial and sexist stereotypes in their shows. With all that put together, Reality TV sends the wrong message to its viewers. Reality Television has a negative impact on society because it is scripted, writers use too many stereotypes to define a character, and it sends the wrong message to its viewers.

Reality Television has changed television in a way that no one could have imagined. Being the one of the most talked about genre in history, it is seen by millions of viewers. It has more ratings than any other kind of show (Breyer 16). From its start, there have been many Reality Television shows. Shows like The Real World, Survivor, Big Brother, and Jersey Shore. All of these give off a negative portrayal of reality. While Americans watch these shows, it seems that the show is real life, but in reality, no pun intended, before the show is even filmed, it’s written, edited, and produced (Breyer 21). Writers humiliate and degrade people just for the plot of the show, making their private lives public (Breyer 16).

One question that viewers ask is, “Is Reality Television really real?” One can think so, but in the long run, it is really not. A great example of discovering this is World Wrestling Entertainment, also known as the WWE. From...

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