How Real is Reality TV?
Reality television programs are unconventional, but have become the most popular type of tv
amongst viewers. This category of television programming is unscripted and casts real life people, instead
of professional actors, and just follows these people and documents their lives. Reality television has
become such a staple in our American lives today that it’s difficult to partition what we watch on
television and what we do in our real lives. So exactly how “real” are these programs? Are there clear
distinctions between what we watch on tv and how we carry on our daily lives? Or are these television
programs becoming more”real” because we integrate what we see into how we live? If so, why is that? Why
do people crave the lifestyles they see on tv? Society is strange, but sociology explains possible
explanations as to why this may be. The final decision is up to the viewer and everyone interprets what
they see differently. Sociologically speaking, reality television provides many concepts as to why we love
these television programs so much that we’d want to integrate what we see into our actual lives.
Symbolic interactionism is the the micro level theory of how shared meanings, orientation, and
assumptions form basic motivation behind people’s actions. This concept is useful in understanding
cultures, and how different actions portray different meanings in various places around the world. This
concept allows viewers to evaluate their own behavior in comparison to others. Reality TV portrays this
theory by allowing viewers to see that their real life actions are acceptable, because they see others doing
the same thing on TV, and because the show is “reality” and not scripted. An example of this concept
would be the “​bromance​”, a non-sexual but affectionate relationship of two male friends, between Pauly D
and Vinny, on hit MTV reality show, J​ ersey Shore​. The cast of the Jersey Shore include a group of 8
strangers who are of Italian descent and lead lifestyles of the modern day “guidos and guidettes”. Two of
the four guys on the show formed a very special bond, they are best friends and refer to their relationship
as a “bromance”. As their bromance grows, viewers see that the guys hug, kiss, and show very affectionate
actions towards one another. This is an example of symbolic interactionism because many male
friendships today have grown into “bromances”, and many guys have grown to accept the fact that it is
okay to be affectionate with one another and not have to worry about being labeled as “gay” or
“feminine”. Their “bromance” is an example of how people have modified their own actions and beliefs
based on what is seen on TV, alongside other interactions amongst reality stars.
Another popular product from Jersey Shore is the ever so popular, ​fist pump​. The fist pump is a
dance move and gesture where the arm is raised and hand is formed into a fist, as the arm is raised and
lowered in a thrusting motion. This is a very popular dance move that was exposed in the club scene of the
Jersey Shore. Depicted above is Jersey Shore cast member, P
​ auly D​, fist pumping in a club alongside a
female companion. Before the show, fist pumping was not a commonly known dance move, but once
Jersey Shore exposed the gesture to the world, it has become rare to walk into a club and not see “fist
pumpers”. This is an example of how people have modified their daily lives because of what they have seen
or been exposed to on reality television. Jersey Shore has created new social norms that are widely
accepted because “normal” people are pictured doing them on national television.
Symbolic Interactionism is also seen in hit MTV reality show, T
​ he Hills.​ The Hills featured
fashion student L
​ auren Conrad​ and her friends as they embark on their new journeys in the hills of Los
Angeles, California. Viewers quickly became obsessed and engulfed themselves into the drama of Lauren’s
life, relationships, and conflicts with other cast members. Lauren lived the life of a normal girl in her early
20’s except the drama was magnified and exaggerated to a whole different level. Conrad, more popularly
known as LC, faced the challenges of fake friends, betrayal, love triangles, heartache, but also chased her
dream and climbed the fashion ladder and worked alongside world famous designers. Because LC is not a
professional actress and just lives her life, viewers feel that they can relate to the events in her life and
ultimately form a bond with her. Viewers are able to see her journey and can feel like they are living her
dream with her. Many viewers root for her success and others watch the drama in her life to make up for
the lack of drama in their own lives. Also, because LC was presented with many rare opportunities,
viewers might get the sense that they are living vicariously through her.
Another sociological concept seen on The Hills is social control. Social control is a set of
mechanisms that create normative compliance between members of society, meaning there are unspoken
rules and norms that are generally accepted, understood, and should not be broken. The informal social
control present in the Hills is the unspoken rule of not dating a friend’s ex boyfriend or girlfriend. As seen
in the clip above, Lauren is telling a mutual friend about how A
​ udrina Patridge​, Conrad’s friend and
former roommate, has accused Lauren of hooking up with her on again off again boyfriend, Justin Bobby.
Conrad of course understands the concept of informal social control and would never become involved
with Justin Bobby, and Conrad doesn’t particularly understand why Patridge would even accuse her of
such action because Justin Bobby is simply not Conrad’s type. This example of informal social control
affects the lives of viewers because seeing that other people follow the rules of the “girlcode” make people
more susceptible to following those rules in their own lives. Breaking the girl code can lead to very bad
consequences​, even breaking up friendships.
Conflict theory is also a big theme in reality television, particularly apparent in shows such as ​The
Bachelor​ and the R
​ eal World​ Challenge. Conflict theory is defined by a social belief where many different
outlets compete for the same resources. The idea that conflict between competing interests in society is
obvious in in clip above of The Bachelor. The Bachelor is a television series where one man is trying to find
the woman he wants to spend the rest of his life with, amongst a group of 25 women who are living in the
same house and competing for time with the bachelor. As you can see, things get very intense and tension
runs high when competition and jealousy starts to grow between women. The male bachelor is the obvious
scarce resource that these women are fighting over. This concept carries over into the lives of viewers
because it instills a sense of competition in our own lives where we want to emerge victorious. Also, many
viewers crave the drama that they see in these television programs to fill the void in their own lives. Many
female viewers can also live vicariously through the show and imagine themselves in place of the girl
featured on each date.
The Real World Challenge​ is a television show where multiple groups of individuals compete in
series of events for a grand prize that takes place in the final episode. Eliminations are at the end of every
round and the worst team gets automatically placed in them. While the winning group not only advances
to the next round, an individual competes for power over the whole group thus giving the individual
winner of the round more say so. That individual gets to choose a team to face the worst team in the
elimination round. There is a form of social inequality due to race and or age. Contestants always want to
eliminate the less social, or even the youngest ones. This is for power, and it is not divided equally. The
conflict paradigm focuses on divisions of society, this television series gives us a perspective of society
having social order and control through dominance. Due to scarce resources, competition is inevitable and
we can see examples of social dominance in the Real World Challenge. Most reality television shows use a
form of the conflict paradigm by having conflict over resources, such as money, goods, or power. This
theme keeps TV ratings soaring due to the fabricated struggles relating to some of the viewer’s lives by the
social inequality that society faces.
To be able to look at reality TV through a sociological imagination, one can get additional
perspectives of it. Macrosociology, meaning to look and analyze the social systems on a large scale, is
important. Reality TV has another sociological perception, and that is functionalism. This theory is a
macro-level paradigm, which argues that the social structure is continuously attempting to maintain
social equilibrium (balance) among all of the components of society. This paradigm is interested in the
structure of society and how it impacts people’s lives.
While the economy is looking to stabilize itself, reality television gives it the opportunity to go
through the structure of functionalism. Reality television shows its viewers these reality stars that wear
brand clothing to refresh their minds when it comes the latest fashion trend. In “Jersey Shore” reality
television star M
​ ichael Sorrentino​, known, as “The Situation” happens to wear A
​ bercrombie & Fitch
brand clothing. This is a form of product placement that gets the attention of consumers by allowing
them to be in place with our society’s fashion and puts money in the pockets of those that are displayed.
The economical structure stabilizes without much effort and unintentionally helps boost up sales on
certain lines of clothing. As reality television star ​Kim Kardashian​ goes through her normal daily routine
on her show, she flashes designer brand clothing such as L
​ ouis Vuitton​, or ​Burberry​. Kardashian and the
rest of her clan are shown in the biggest designer brands, and their lavish lifestyle is not subtle, by any
means. Though it may apparent that these are expensive articles of clothing, it still encourages society to
stick to the latest fashion and companies get promoted without them having to rely only on
advertisements.
A functionalist paradigm can maintain and restore equilibrium in its social system with shared
values. This phenomenon has the individuals in society conversing with one another about a show they
like to watch, or in which they can both relate to. Having shared values helps prevent conflicts among the
structure, which makes functionalism completely opposite of the conflict theory. Society interacts
naturally within each other. Due to the lack of drama in most people’s lives, the reality television shows
have controversial arguments throughout the series that may be suitable to talk about with people who
have seen the same show. This brings a commonality among people. For instance, people will ask each
other about the debate among reality television stars or what they think on a TV star’s latest haircut.
These reality TV stars have set trends or social norms in a way that forms a social structure throughout
America. If one would “fist pump” at a club, people who’ve seen “Jersey Shore” can familiarize and relate
with each other all with a simple gesture.
To understand reality TV’s true effect on the general population, we must consider the social
concepts of manifest and latent functions. A manifest function of reality TV would be the purpose of its
conception – entertainment. Unlike the news, reality television is to humor the public with unlikely
scenarios of drinking, sex, and of course the signature dramatic fights that make a reality series popular.
Whether you want to know who the K
​ ardashians​ are dating or how ​Snooki​ gets her “hair-poof”, you are
intentionally giving into reality TV’s manifest function. However, what makes these programs
controversial, at times, would be the latent function – the unexpected outcome of reality television. The
latent function could be anything from you not exercising enough because you’re watching the show on a
couch, to you not getting out and socializing with friends due to your obsession about different series.
These outcomes of both manifest and latent functions tend to lead to dysfunctions. Manifest and latent
dysfunctions are intended and unintended negative effects on society. Purposely watching reality TV
allows one to share the common phrase “oh, let me see how stupid this show is.” Often viewers want to sit
down and criticize the many people of the reality programs, thus the manifest dysfunction. As for the
latent dysfunction, an unexpected and negative outcome of reality series could be your unconscious
decisions and attitudes. When Jersey Shore first aired, those who were unfamiliar with “guido” and
“guidette” culture instantly began to attribute an unconscious belief that Italians from New Jersey were all
obnoxious and troublesome. As a conclusion, people are unaware that reality TV had shaped their basic
ideas of different cultures and peoples and the way they perceived the world.