The Pros And Cons Of Reality Television

For most generations, television was innocent as a child. Tom and Jerry, The Looney Tunes, and Scooby-Doo were all a Saturday ritual. Although older generations experienced this, technology has grown tremendously since then and so has the ability for not so innocent content to be displayed on reality television. Children of the new generations are subject to The Kardashians and “Jersey Shore” where partying, glamour, and sexual content are all present. Reality television and its producers are skewing the minds of innocent children into thinking that this content portrays the true values of life. While this may be true for the few entertainers included in these shows, it is false for everyday, working, citizens and gives a distorted hope to the viewers. It is unethical for networks to call this “reality” television. …show more content…
In their article, Reality Television Predicts Both Positive and Negative Outcomes for Adolescent Girls, Ferguson, Salmond and Modi indicate that “… reality television connectedness (ie, feeling as if one relates personally to the show content) correlates with a focus on one’s appearance (valuing physical appearance as a major facet of self esteem)…” These young girls are discouraged when they feel that they will not be as beautiful as the reality television stars or be able to live the glamorous lifestyles they hold. If networks want to display true reality, they should be incorporating the lives of average people that still have beautiful lives so children have something to look forward to and can relate