The Reality TV Craze

By Ben Ciaccio

It all started back in 1948 with Candid Camera. This show is the grand-daddy of all Reality TV shows. It had all the basic elements of what we see today as "Reality TV". There was drama, suspense, voyeurism, comedy, and unexpected interaction with other on-screen entities.

But for me, my love of Reality TV started out with a simple viewing of a show called Survivor. It was the very first season, and I was hooked from the start. I wanted to see who ate the cooked rats, and who got booted off, and if the nudist guy was going to upset other people on the island. They really picked the right players for this American introduction into modern Reality TV. Sure, there was Real World before it, but that was less of a challenge, and more of a social experiment.

I've gone through the Reality game shows: Fear Factor, Dog Eat Dog, and others that I can't even remember at the moment. I've watched the social-experiment shows, Joe Schmo, Beauty and the Geek, and Big Brother. The competition shows, American Idol, Celebrity Inventor, Last Comic Standing. You know, there are probably more reality shows on television these days than news shows, or situation comedies.

So what does this all mean? Is Reality TV finally part of our everyday lives? Absolutely. American Idol had 30-some million votes on a regular basis, and that's with only 13-17 million viewers (depending on the day). Big Brother is hugely popular, and I am glad it's back on for Season 8! Now that we're talking about "who got voted out" at the water cooler the day after show day, and on the edge of our seats waiting for prime time to come around, the networks will have to keep our interest, and keep creating shows that have twists and turns, as well as providing a few twists and turns of the old favorites for the new seasons.

If you're like me, and you like talking about Reality shows, or just reading other people's thoughts on them, then the best place to go is the up-and-coming realityrant.com site. Current shows are always being added, and if you don't see your favorite shows, let the admins know!

By Ben with Reality Rant
The best home for Reality TV chat, news, and more!
http://www.RealityRant.com

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