Author's Quote:Why are networks giving such a push to reality programming? According to a recent article by Laurie Hibberd, cost has much to do with it. “Reality shows cost an average of $400,000 per hour to produce versus $2 million for a dramatic series” (Hibberd, 2002). With this vastly less expensive option and the ratings for reality programming going through the roof, every network that wants to continue doing business feels the need to market new reality shows and somehow keep America begging for more; so far this plan is working. Throughout the wide variety of all of these reality shows a common thread remains: the people starring in the shows are supposedly all regular, “real” people going through “real” situations. One has to wonder what this bombardment of “realness” must do to the viewers.
Paraphrase:Networks find reality television to be a good thing for one main reason: it is the least expensive option for a show. It only costs $400,000 an hour to construct rather than paying $2 million for another type of television show, specifically dramas. Networks think that they should keep reality television because they want America beseeching for more of these kinds of shows. Reality television shows “real” people going through “real” predicaments. Teenagers and kids do not understand that “reality” television is not really reality.
Summary: This article is all about reality television and how it is not a good thing for people to be watching, especially kids and teenagers. Americans watch so much television that they are prone to think that reality television is actually what happens. Experts believe that these networks producing reality televison are polluting our minds with disturbing and inappropriate things of reality and it should be stopped.
Source Analysis: In this article, there was some author bias because it said that reality TV produces a distorted reality, while other people may think it is the best kind of television. Some of the propaganda techniques used in this article are bandwagon, name calling, and plain folks. It is bandwagon because they interviewed many people and they were talking about how it affects the whole nation. It is name calling because they are pin pointing reality television to be the worst kind of television. It is plain folks because in their experiment, they used regular, average people. An important text element was that reality television is the least expensive show to produce and networks will not stop producing them because they are so cheap.
Pontius, Ericka. "The Impact of Reality Television on Viewers' Perception of Reality." clearinghouse.missouriwestern.edu. N.p., 2003. Web. 23 Mar 2011. http://clearinghouse.missouriwestern.edu/manuscripts/409.php.
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