When Reality TV Gets Too Real - Peters; TV Contestants: Tired, Tipsy and Pushed to the Brink - Wyatt

Name of author, name of essay/chapter reporting on: Jeremy Peters, When Reality TV Gets Too Real and Edward Wyatt, TV Contestants: Tired, Tipsy and Pushed to Brink

Your articulation of their thesis (i.e. in your own words):

            Both of these New York Times articles identify and discuss the environments on reality TV shows.

In TV Contestants, Wyatt speaks to contestants on competitive reality TV shows such as “Hell’s Kitchen” and “The Bachelor,” where contestants were worked almost 20 hours a day, deprived of sleep and access to communication devices (phones, computers, etc.) and entertainment (TV, books, magazines, etc.), and, in some cases, underfed. They also spoke of the ready availability of alcohol at all times. Wyatt discusses whether or not this is ethical treatment of the contestants – if they do not sign a disclosure agreement allowing the show to treat them how it wishes, they will be kicked out and someone else on the long waiting list will replace them, but if they do sign it, they are allowing the show’s producers to manipulate them so they make better television. Wyatt does not make a case either way, but acknowledges that the people running the show aren’t actually forcing the contestants to do anything against their will. The contestants, however, were not made aware of the expectations of them, and reveal that they were continuously exhausted, hungry, and emotionally strained.

In When Reality TV Gets Too Real, Peters investigates reality TV shows that have camera crews follow people around during their daily lives, such as alcoholics (on the show “Intervention”) or police officers (“Cops”). On some of these shows, the subject of the episode/show puts themselves and/or others in danger as the cameras roll. Peters’ question is this: should the camera crews, producers, directors, etc. intervene in these situations? Obviously, these sort of situations make for exciting, dramatic television, and they want to capture as much of it on film as they can. Additionally, American law does not require people to intervene in a crime in progress or obligate anyone to help anyone else in a bad situation. I believe that Peters’ opinion is that it is the moral obligation of the showmakers to help the subject of their show if they are going to put others and/or themselves in danger or commit a grievous crime.

At least three links or images that illustrate the ideas of the article:

1. This kind of picture is literally the only thing I could think about when I was reading in the Peters article about the camera crew of Intervention not… well, intervening when an alcoholic woman got into her car and, clearly drunk, drove away. Some staff member could surely have driven her car for her, or simply taken away her keys. She created a dangerous (and potentially fatal) situation for herself and everyone around her, and that is not okay to me.

2. The Wyatt article talked a lot about the bad conditions the contestants on Hell’s Kitchen and other such reality TV shows worked under, and when he wrote about sleep deprivation, I immediately thought of something I had read about sleepdeprivation being used to torture detainees in Guantanamo. Personally, I think anything that could be considered torture should not be allowed to be practiced anywhere, much less an accepted, professional environment such as the entertainment/television industry.

3. These articles really made me question the practices that go on in the reality TV business. Personally, I enjoy watching a show called “Wipeout,” in which contestants try to complete obstacle courses in order to win money. The contestants are always very… interesting people, with flamboyant, overdramatic personalities – after reading these articles, I find myself wondering if that’s just the way those people are, or if they have been affected in some way by the show’s producers/directors to make them more interesting and/or ridiculous to the audience.

At least two discussion questions that will help your reader develop the ideas of the article (i.e., keep us talking):

1. Would you, as a Christian, ever work on the staff of a reality show like Hell’s Kitchen or Intervention? Why or why not?

2. Would you ever knowingly enter a situation like that of the contestants on Hell’s Kitchen? If you would, what are your motivations? If you wouldn’t, do you think it’s wrong for others to do so?