What is Reality?

               Whenever there is nothing for me to do at home I turn on my TV to see what, if anything good is on. I usually just click the button labeled next on my TV remote and begin to channel surf to see if anything catches my eye. But usually nothing really does so I just click the power button. Like clockwork later sometime that week one of my friends is bound to ask me if I had seen that amazing thing some guy did, or maybe if I saw that the Kardashians went out to eat dinner then went straight back home. My usual response is that I did not see that because I do not really watch reality TV shows. When I think about a reality TV show I think it is something very irrelevant that should not be considered a TV show. Or better yet should not be considered reality itself. If I was to put someone my same age who had never been to America or seen our lifestyles and shown him or her some random reality TV show such as the Kardashians or Jersey Shore (which thankfully is no more *sigh in relief*) and told them this is what reality is, what kind of image would they have of us? When did reality become TV?

                

                 Lately reality TV shows have taken America and the world by storm, giving a false impression of popularity and every day true reality. I would not entirely condemn these shows and pursue them to be banned off TV networks or something of that sort. Since no one is forcing anyone to watch them, you have that decision in your own hands and that is how it should be. But I do believe that these shows serve no true purpose, they have no underlying message that many people would like to connect with and would have a good and positive reaction towards. These shows usually include friends just getting drunk and partying, being rich and enjoying that which many ordinary people are not able to do, or many other negative images and overall bad messages. They may be fun to watch for many because hey, it’s funny seeing someone trip into a pool and have everybody laugh at them or seeing people in a bar and getting punched by some guy. But the problem here is that the people who are in reality TV shows usually become famous for all the wrong reasons and spread this same message. “Well I would like to have fun and just do funny stuff and act like someone I’m not to become paid and be famous” that is the kind of message that some kids and people may perceive from some of these shows and I believe it is not a very good message to be receiving.

                

                As I said before, you hold the controller in your hand, you are the one who decides what you want to watch. I also have the decision to watch reality TV shows but decide against it since I know that all in all it is overall idiocrasy to be taking it as true reality. But as much as I wished that they were not labeled reality TV shows and not better “Fake reality TV shows” they are not. This is what many other people do indeed consider as true reality that is achievable if one mimics those same actions that made those people on TV famous and rich. I for one will continue to skip and press next to any “reality TV” show that shows up on my TV screen.