Contrived Television

ahowell — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 13:25:48 -0600

Do you remember way back when fame came to those with talent? Way back when you had to be an actor, an author, a philanthropist, an athlete, a politician? Then around the 90’s, cast members from MTV’s “The Real World” started slowly appearing in the mix with actual celebrities. Fast forward to today. Now we have a group of famous people who are known for basically hanging out on camera.

It upsets me that I can recognize Jon Gosselin, Kim Kardashian and “Snookie”. But I, personally, can’t identify their talents. It seems they are famous because of these things: Kim Kardashian is famous for filming her intimate moments with Ray-J. Snookie is known as the girl who got sucker punched at the bar. And besides his marital troubles, Jon Gosselin is famous for fathering eight children.

I had the opportunity to audition for a dating reality show. The production company was looking for single contestants who were willing to try dating—on air. When I arrived for the taped Q&A session, however, I realized how far we have come from and how far people are willing to go be famous. I was asked to lay out my entire life. For instance... “Tell us surprising things about yourself or your past that most people don’t know." Or “Tell us your unique life story in 50 words or less." After my interview session, I started to have nightmares about being introduced to the world on such a medium. You have no control over how you are presented or how you are perceived. What if I get punched on TV, like Snookie? I haven’t been called yet to appear for the show. But one thing’s for sure…I’m not waiting for the phone to ring.

Previously:

Reality TV

Youth Radio - Topic: kim kardashian

Contrived Television