Reality TV has become the new genre of television programming to
arrest the attention of the American viewer. When 16 people get thrown off
a ship, and have to live for just less than 40 days on a deserted island,
modern culture is held spellbound. How does a person live when nothing more
than their wits are guaranteed. Yet Americans are glued to their
televisions, engrossed in the drama as if they were present themselves.
What about the myriad of shows which put a cruel twist on love, dating,
romance, and money. How realistic is it to spend months in a European
castle while being jetted all over the globe, and expect to find love with
a person who is your host. Joe Millionaire is a fraud, the Bachlorette is
choosing between you, or a million dollars, and your blind date is
listening to your ex-dates dish dirt through an exclusive feed while you
try to make a good impression on someone you have not met until now. Even
the Television Emmy awards have created a category for reality TV.
The most unique reality show, set for airing its second installment
after the first of the year is promoted as "The ultimate fantasy meets the
ultimate reality" Tyra Banks hosts a show which selects from modeling
apprentices across the country. Over the course of 8 or 9 weeks, the field
is whittled down to one winner, who has outlasted, out strutted, and out
endured the rest in order to win a modeling contract. This voyeuristic
show is as far away from reality as Pluto is from the sun, but yet viewers
flock to watch, and find a vicarious connection with those who attain a
measure of success beyond their wildest dreams.
Susan Bordo's essay Hunger as Ideology" addresses the same
phenomenon in our popular culture. The image of a women's body as presented
in the media has changed the way women in general view themselves. When
assaulted with images of thin, beautiful women, the image...