Reality TV vs Game Shows

The radio on the way home from work was talking about the worst and best reality TV, and it got me thinking. Not about what I thought was the worst or best, but what in fact was reality TV.

TV stations are in love with reality TV, but in reality what they are producing is game shows.

If you want to watch reality TV watch Police 10/7 or Motorway Patrol, because Survivor, Treasure Island, America’s Next Top Model, all of what most people now consider to be reality TV isn’t.

Lets just pick on one of them: Survivor. It’s a game show. Contestants are put in a situation and forced to play off against each other by competing in activities. The winner wins immunity or something else, and in the end, the season champion wins $1 Million.

It’s a game show people.

Even Police 10/7 or Motorway Patrol isn’t really reality TV, but it’s the closest we’ll going to get. Motorway Patrol follows the police as they patrol the Auckland motorway system, chasing drunk drivers and sorting out motor accidents. But it’s all cleverly edited. Nicely packaged. Produced to entertain.

If you want reality TV, get a job as a night security guard who sits in front of a bank of monitors keeping a watch. That’s reality TV.