Khaled Itani
Assignment 2.1 Reality Television You anxiously turn on the TV to watch the next episode of your favorite series. As you struggle to find the right channel, you come across a scene from Cops; hostages, cops, gunfire, chaos and terrorists. Before you know it you find yourself glued to the couch, tightly holding on to the pillow as it was your lifeline. The scene has brought upon you a rush of adrenaline that teleported you to the scene, the intricate details submerged you in an atmosphere of excitement and alertness. You are now one of the cops trying to rescue the helpless hostages that are cheating death with every breath, all within the safety of our couch with a bowl of popcorn in hand. This is the state that we involuntarily enter when we watch reality TV. We tend to enjot watching people getting bullied, called names, made fun of and even humiliated. There is a certain voyeuristic pleasure that we derive, out of watching others fight it out and sometimes completely disgrace each other.
Reality television has exploded in the last decade. In fact, it would be difficult to find an hour of the day when a reality television show isn’t on. What exactly is the appeal of reality television that has so many viewers completely hooked? Possibly, it’s the unexpected glimpse you get into other people’s lives that helps take the focus off present troubles, or makes everyone’s day to day