Audiences understand that shows are manipulated. However, for the most part, viewers accept this and even expect it realizing, like the producers, that it is necessary in order to keep the shows entertaining. As one viewer wrote, “there’s a line between, you know, true reality and reality that’s entertaining” (Rose & Wood, 2005). Viewers want to observe real people, but they do not want the reality shows to be boring. They want a “hyperauthenticity” which combines the real with fantasy (Rose & Wood, 2005). Viewers are willing to deceive themselves into thinking this is real life, not acted or scripted. They accept the idea that the manipulation of a show can make it seem more real than if a camera were just left rolling to record the action.
Overall, while viewers realize that what they are seeing is not purely real, they feel it is real enough. Viewers want authenticity but are aware that what is being watched has many aspects that are not. It works for the viewers because they are allowed to fill in the blanks as to what is real versus what is being shown to them. Viewers know participants are aware that they are being filmed and yet, viewers accept that they are exhibiting normal behavior.
What is the bottom line when it comes to accepting a show as representing reality? What is absolutely essential is the lack of any indication that results of a competition within a show are in any way rigged. Other than that, as long as the reality of the situation has not been obviously altered by editing (as perceived by the audience), it can still be accepted as real.
What about the highly unusual scenarios? Are they accepted by viewers as part of a reality show? If the goal was to make the shows seem truly real, they would not include such outlandish scenarios as tropical islands and penthouse apartments. They would not put participants in extraordinary situations involving conditions that ordinary people would rarely, if ever, face. However, it is exactly because they are not common scenarios that make viewers want to watch.
“This is the kind of life many working Americans would like to escape to, which is why many watch it. Reality TV has become so popular because they provide and escape from everyday lives. They take us away from reality and we can return with the push of a button” (Venable, 2002, para. 2).
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