Group #9 Where Will Reality Televions End?

Jim Roush
Nicole Boyd

Today’s reality shows are similar to the games shows of the 1960’s-1980’s in that, this game show era was the rage. Family Feud, The Newlywed Game, $10,000 Pyramid and the likes of them, ran almost non-stop in an attempt to amuse our society. Today, author and TV commentator George Will implies that, reality TV seems to have taken over this role for today’s TV watching generation. With the ever-increasing outragousness of the reality show, one must ask the question, "where will it end?"

TV producers are, in their opinion, just giving the people what they want. This would be supported by the fact that ratings are the determining factor as to what makes the cut. Advertisers are also a driving force in determining what drives what stays on TV, as they are the financial sponsors of the shows that they think people want to watch, and associate that show with the products they are selling.

There is so much reality television that is confrontational, that people are becoming desensitized to the violence. Shows such as The Family Guy are taken too far and push the limits of comedy and really push the limits of what society will accept as decent and/or acceptable. The problem with this is that, the more that this envelop is pushed, the more tolerant society may become of it, which may continue to gnaw away at our culture as we know it.

Where will it end, sitting in your livingroom watching a show where constestants play Russian Roulette with a real bullet? This rhetorical question is asked by Will, and we agree that there will be a point where our society must find an acceptable balance between preserving decency  and protecting 1st Amendment rights.

George Will, would definitely have a strong negative point of view for the article "Are 24, Family Guy and Grand Theft Auto Actually Good For You?" These shows are attempting to pave new ground for outrageousness in an effort to stand-out from their other prime-time competitors.