Reality TV has various effects, including a distorted sense of reality and unique relationships between contestants. It can lead to lucrative advertising profits for TV stations and turn contestants into celebrities, potentially furthering their careers. However, it can also create a false sense of what is really happening and misrepresent participants through editing.
Since reality TV is a relatively new entertainment phenomenon that can come in many different forms and formats, all of its possible effects are probably not yet known. Known effects of reality TV include an altered sense of what may be real and what may not be, as well as unique types of relationships or connections between contestants. Television stations enjoy the effects of lucrative advertising profits as nationally broadcast reality programs garner large audiences which allows commercials in the show to be charged for the best prices. Other effects of reality TV involve many contestants being recognized as celebrities by the public and perhaps even furthering a television career after appearing on one or more of these shows.
For example, Elisabeth Hasslebeck was a contestant on the reality TV show Survivor who then became a co-host on the popular American daytime talk show The View. Some people who hope to be actors sign up to be on reality shows in hopes of being noticed by producers and directors. Especially if a reality TV participant becomes popular with viewers, they may be asked to participate in programs of the same television network or even a competitor. In this way, reality effects can offer those who want to work in television opportunities they probably wouldn’t have had if they hadn’t appeared in one of these programs.
Since national reality shows tend to have large audiences, television stations may charge advertisers the highest prices for commercials that air during shows. This profitability underpinned the effects of reality TV’s prevalence in the television lineup. While decades ago, game shows and other programming involving contestants competing for awards were nowhere near as dominant in numbers as comedies, dramas, and other entertainment, today that has changed for the most part. Some reality shows have several episodes air several times a week rather than just weekly.
A distorted sense of reality is often cited as an ironic effect of this type of television programming. For example, in the weeks or months that a reality show takes place, gaming alliances can be mistaken for friendships. Sometimes, participants who think they make good friends are actually just used to get ahead in the game and end up being voted out by the person or people they trusted. The effects of reality TV on audiences can include a false sense of what is really going on. For example, television editing can make some participants appear quieter than others even when they are not, by simply showing them less often than others in the show.
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