Baby, If You've Ever Wondered…

In your opinion, do you think Reality TV has revitalized television?

Yes.

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1004251,00.html

@Rahul: I have a theory on that. I think that reality TV made us really hungry for real TV shows again, with quality writing and plot. HOWEVER, I think that the reality tv shows really struck a nerve with people who embraced the continuity of the ongoing storyline and connection with the human characters. I think that scripted TV shows have totally taken the hint that we want engaging, serialized stories that unfold over the course of a season, with compelling, human characters that we can actually relate to. Combine that with the current Renaissance in TV writing, which is just fantastic, and you have the great TV shows that are on now. So many more stories (Lost, Prison Break, 24, Kyle XY, Heroes, etc) unfold gradually, with new developments each episode on a broader ongoing plot or mythology (rather than having episodes that are more “stand-alone”). So, I think that Reality TV DID help to revitalize television – by starving us for well-written, well-acted material, but also by helping us make the jump to more ongoing, serialized stories, and more complex, flawed, and inherently more interesting characters.

James – I just read that article you linked to – really interesting and thought-provoking! Good job as usual :)

James- really nice article that one about reality tv. i was just trying to remember where a lot of this started, and i figured that mark burnett’s survivor was a catalyst for the reality tv boom. do u think so too? was it him that created the impact on the television that we watch, and the shift to reality tv?

Well, all TV influences are a long chain. The Real World begat Survivor. An American Family begat The Real World. But Survivor was the show that demonstrated that you could make reality TV–thought of as a niche, MTV thing–work on a big-network level. And Burnett certainly had great influence on the storytelling structure of reality shows.

So would you say (if only one man had to be picked) that Mark Burnett (and his survivor) was the catalyst for the reality tv boom? Cos it sure seems that way from a macro point of view. as u said, his was the first major hit…

I don’t think I could pick one man. I don’t think it’s as simple as that. Why do you ask?

That was not howard hessman as “the chemist”

hiya james. rahul here.

i’m actually a student and im doing some research on reality television. the project requires us to come up with a hypothetical showcase of someone’s work. everywhere i’ve looked, mark burnett’s name keeps popping up, and ri thought that a nice tribute to him would be to hold a mini-eco challenge, which could also promote being environmentally friendly, by like going through parks and stuff. aside from that, do you have any figures on the rise of reality television? i think i read somewhere that 1 in 3 primetime shows this season is a reality show. could u comment on that? thanks a lot mate!