Reality television has really hit it big in the past few years. There has been a small history of the reality television phenomenon before that, but it has seen a huge boom in recent history. The first hint of reality-based television was with the popular hit Candid Camera in 1948, so while reality TV has been around for quite some time, the demand for it has definitely not been as strong as it is now. Of course the first big MTV reality TV hit, that still holds the attention of many viewers was in 1992 with Real World. MTV since then has added many other programs of similar merit to their programming. You don’t have to find reality television on just MTV. They are everywhere. At any given time, I believe there has to be 10 other reality shows.
When thinking of reality television you automatically think of The Simple Life, Real World, My Super Sweet Sixteen, Laguna Beach, The Hills, American Idol, America’s Next Top Model, and Project Runway. These shows are based a lot on look and how far it gets you in the world. These shows focus primarily on the female perspective and showcase how important it is to be attractive to be able to get you somewhere in the world. These shows are part of the reason why young women feel the need to be a size two and create this unrealistic ideal to what a young woman is supposed to look like. It’s terrible and causes so much stress on high school and college aged women. These are the real issues. They should create reality shows on how devastating an eating disorder can be and how it is possible to rise up in the world by not being this 5’10”, skinny blonde girl, that goes around saying “that’s hott” every other word.
The reality TV shows that are based off of celebrities or people that have become celebrities, because of being on television, like many of the MTV stars, have become role models to young women. Now not all of them are bad and have made poor decisions, if I had to choose to look up to Heidi Montag or Lauren Conrad, Lauren would be the better choice. I don’t deny that someone like Paris Hilton has done something with her life, but she is not exactly the best role model for a 13 year old girl, what mother wants their daughter going around calling her friends and saying “Hey Bitch” as a term of endearment. That’s not something to be proud of, how many times has Paris shown the world her “vah jay jay” (to quote Miranda Bailey from Grey’s Anatomy), or been caught in the backseat of a police cruiser? She needs to have her own reality show to find her next best friend. What is this saying to the world? Does she not have any self-respect? Are young girls going to think that best friends are expendable and don’t worry you can treat your BFF like complete shit and in no time you can hold your own competition to see who wants to be next in line?
Now not all reality shows have the snooty, rich, girl complex. There are about 50 different home improvement shows, thank you TLC and HGTV. Trading Spaces, Flip That House, Extreme Make Over: Home Edition, and Flipping Out. Don’t worry, these shows promise you that you can buy any old rundown house in any neighborhood, flip it and make a huge profit off of it.
Oh, and if you have any doubt that you need a little bit of style or can’t dress yourself, or your husband needs a little help kicking his wardrobe into gear, there’s a show for that! If you are desperate enough for a makeover and feel like you just can’t afford paying for one yourself, just go online and fill out an application, or send in some pictures of you on your worst day and you will have no problem getting a visit from Stacey London and Clinton Kelly. Or, if you are really down on your luck, Extreme Makeover will take you from that ugly frog that you are and turn you into a beautiful prince or princess, but don’t forget your sappy, heart-wrenching story to go along with it.
Many of these shows poke fun at people who are not the best looking, the best singers, or don’t have the best talent. American Idol is notorious for putting you in front of cruel judges and making you look like a complete idiot, because you believe you really do have a good voice. Come on, they let these people through three other sets of judges before they throw you in front of the ever loving Simon Cowell, just to boost their ratings. I’m sure these shows have started off on the right foot, not all reality shows have been created to show you how stupid the American people are. The Biggest Loser, for instance really does change the lives of the contestants, they are able to create a better lifestyle and improve their health. Top Chef and Project Runway allow these professionals to showcase their talent and jumpstart their careers. These shows are great and a lot of people do watch them, but they spend a lot of their time watching shows that hold no merit, as well.
I'm sure every one has heard of Perez Hilton, a huge gossip in the celebrity world. He can single-handedly make or break a celebrities career. He in notorious for spreading rumors and gossip about the latest thing a celebrity has done to taint their reputation. Perez knows his stuff; he is on every little mishap as soon as it happens. This isn’t the typical reality television that you may think of, but he discusses and makes popular celebrities and people that are on these shows. Even Perez has made a life at poking fun at reality television stars.
The American Dream is the belief in the freedom that allows all citizens and residents of the United States to pursue their goals in life through hard work and bravery. Today, it often refers to one’s material prosperity, which is dependent upon one’s ability and work ethic, and not on a rigid class structure. There has been some talk that all these reality shows have come to molest the idea of the American Dream. They have showed to the world how easy it is to just sit on your ass, fill out and application, and get your 15 minutes of fame that can lead to you getting millions of dollars. This is not what the American Dream is all about, it is about working hard and doing everything you can to get where you want to be and to achieve all that is important to you. How is this achieving the American Dream? Is this what America is coming to? It’s simply pathetic. People are willing to do everything and anything to make their bucks and get their names out there. Why are these television networks just trying to meet quota, instead of coming up with more substantial television shows, they are throwing any reality show out on the television. They are competing with each other to see who can create the better show and gain the better ratings. There have been court cases in which different networks are battling each other, because they have created the same reality television show and just used different names.
An example of this is “CBS and Burnett tried to protect the "Survivor" format against such early knockoffs as Fox's "Boot Camp" and ABC's "I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here!," but those cases settled. Simon Fuller, creator of the global "Idol" phenomenon, sued "Idol" production partner FremantleMedia and judge Simon Cowell in 2004 over the comically similar "The X Factor." ABC claimed that Fox's "Trading Spouses" stole its concept from "Wife Swap." DreamWorks TV and Burnett argued that Fox's "The Next Great Champ" was a direct rip-off of "The Contender." Howard Stern even claimed that ABC's 2003 Lorenzo Lamas laser-pointer show "Are You Hot" was lifted from his radio segment "The Evaluators."
College students seem to be the biggest viewers of reality television. They seem to have taken pop culture by the horns and have been the ones to embrace it. 76.4% of college students have said that they watch a reality television show on a regular basis.
Reality television has become such a huge part of American culture, no wonder other countries think we are lesser than they are. We spend so much time in front of the television watching mindless television and we get the idea that we can do the same as they are and be as big as the reality stars. It can’t be that hard can it?
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Obama vs McCain. The Issues.
Abortion:
Obama- Pro-Choice. He strongly supports a woman’s right to have an abortion. He trusts the woman to make an informed decision. Obama strongly opposes restrictions on medical procedures used during late term abortions.
McCain- Pro-Life. He is anti-abortion and believes that they should only be legal when the pregnancy resulted from incest, rape, or when it endangers the health of the mother. He would prohibit public funding of abortion and public funding of organizations that promote or perform abortions.
Budget/Economy:
Obama- He would require disclosure of all congressional pet projects and force lawmakers pay for any new spending or tax breaks through new revenue and cuts in other programs.
McCain- He will balance the federal budget by the end of his first term by curbing wasteful spending and overhauling entitlement programs, including Social Security. He would attack excessive government spending and reduce budget deficits through cuts in spending that do not finance Social Security, Medicare, and other entitlement programs.
Civil Rights:
Obama- In the US Senate he has been a leading advocate for protecting the right to vote. He would expand Hate Crime Statutes. Obama would combat employment discrimination by working to overturn the Supreme Court’s recent ruling that curtails racial minorities’ and women’s ability to challenge pay discrimination. He will provide job training, substance abuse, and mental health counseling to ex offenders, so that they can be successfully reintegrated into society. He would ban racial profiling by federal law enforcement agencies and provide federal incentives into state and local police departments to prohibit the practice. Obama would end deceptive voting practices by signing into law his legislation that establishes harsh penalties for those who have engaged in voter fraud and provides voters who have been misinformed with accurate and full information so they can vote.
McCain- Has expressed concerns regarding the implementation of affirmative action programs.
Defense/Homeland Security:
Obama- Five years after 9/11, our country is still unprepared for a terrorist attack. From improving security for our transit systems and chemical plants, to increasing cargo screening in our airports and seaports, the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission have been underfunded and ignored. The 9/11 Commission gave the government five F's and 12 D's on the implementation of its recommendations. Senator Obama is a member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and has supported efforts to base homeland security spending on risk rather than pork-barrel politics. He has also introduced legislation to strengthen chemical plant and drinking water security and to enhance disaster preparedness.
McCain- John McCain strongly supports the development and deployment of theater and national missile defenses. Effective missile defenses are critical to protect America from rogue regimes like North Korea that possess the capability to target America with intercontinental ballistic missiles, from outlaw states like Iran that threaten American forces and American allies with ballistic missiles, and to hedge against potential threats from possible strategic competitors like Russia and China. Effective missile defenses are also necessary to allow American military forces to operate overseas without being deterred by the threat of missile attack from a regional adversary.
Education:
Obama- Opposes school vouchers. Believes that “No Child Left Behind” has failed. He believes that the goal was the right one, but that it was not executed in the correct manner. He believes that teacher retention is a problem in nearly 30% of new teachers leaving their jobs within the first five years of their career. He proposes the “Zero to Five” plan to provide support to young children and their parents. His plan places key emphasis on early care and education for infants. He would improve quality and quadruple the “Head Start” programming and funding for the program. Wants to make math and science education a national priority. He would expand summer learning experiences. He would prepare teachers by requiring all school of education to be accredited. Wants to make college affordable by creating a new American Opportunity Tax Credit. Wants to streamline financial aid process by eliminating the current federal financial aid application and enabling families to apply by simply checking a box on their tax form.
McCain- Supports school vouchers. Supports sending federal dollars directly to local schools, cutting back on red tape and saving administration costs. Wants to place parents and children at the center of the education process and empower parents by greatly expanding the ability of the parents to choose among schools for their children.
Energy/Oil
Obama- Supports using more renewable energies, phasing out incandescent light bulbs and requiring new vehicles to be run on biofuel. He wants to look into clean coal uses as a way of freeing US from foreign oil dependency. Proposed giving US automakers help with health coverage in exchange for more hybrid production. Would invest $150 billion over 10 years in production technology and development of biofuel and other renewable energies. Wants to cut emission standards by 50%.
McCain- Supports alternative energies. Wants to look at more nuclear possibilities. Recently supported off-shore-drilling as a way to address the rising price of oil and gas.
Environment:
Obama- Believes global warming will bring devastating consequences if not recognized and stopped. Obama supports capping emissions and giving incentives to corporations that cut greenhouse gases.
McCain- He believes in global warming and that our nation cannot ignore it. McCain feels that cutting emissions throughout the market will force cleaner technology.
Gay Marriage:
Obama- Believes in gay equality. Is a supporter of civil unions, but not marriages. Believes that same-sex marriage should be decided by the state.
McCain- Supports same sex civil unions, but not marriages. Believes that the same sex marriage issue should be decided by individual states.
Gun Control:
Obama- History of supporting gun control. Supports a ban on assault weapons and concealed weapons. He would crackdown on unscrupulous gun dealers.
McCain- Opposes holding gun manufacturers liable for crimes using a firearm and has voted to protect gun manufacturers from such liability. Supports assault weapons and concealed weapons. Believes that banning ammunition is just another way to undermine Second Amendment rights.
Health Care:
Obama- A priority for Obama would be to promote affordable, accessible, and high-quality health care. He would mandate that all children have health care coverage. He would create a national public insurance program that would allow individuals and small businesses to buy affordable health care similar to what is available to federal employees. He supports universal health care. He would create a national health insurance exchange to reform private insurance market.
McCain- Opposes universal healthcare. He supports importing prescription drugs to lower costs. He would offer a refundable $2,500 tax credit and $5,000 for families. He would open health care markets.
Immigration:
Obama- Supports amnesty/permanent legalization for illegal aliens and temporary legislation for illegal aliens as guest workers. Wants to build a fence on the Mexican border. Advocates tougher laws to keep illegal aliens from finding jobs and would create a program for employers to easily verify an applicant’s immigration status.
McCain- Supports amnesty/permanent legalization for illegal aliens and temporary legislation for illegal aliens as guest workers. Advocates tightening of the border by increasing patrols. He would increase number of visas issued for agriculture workers.
Social Security:
Obama- Opposes privatization of the Social Security system. He supports the interests of the Alliance for Retired Americans. He believes the system is faulted, but can be fixed with relatively minor changes.
McCain- Believes Social Security is failing, because it is raided to fund other government programs. He supports allowing workers to invest a portion of their payroll tax in private accounts which they would manage themselves.
Taxes:
Obama- Would allow the Bush tax cuts to expire. Would raise taxes on federal gain and dividends and give tax breaks to low and middle-income Americans. Supports a universal mortgage tax credit of 10%.
McCain- Wants to make the Bush tax cuts permanent. Supports a simplified income tax system with two rates and a generous standard deduction. Proposed suspending the federal gas tax during the summer of 2008. Would reform estate taxation. Would forbid internet and cell phone taxes.
War:
Obama- Before the war in Iraq ever started, Senator Obama said that it was wrong in its conception. In 2002, then Illinois State Senator Obama said Saddam Hussein posed no imminent threat to the United States and that invasion would lead to an occupation of undetermined length, at undetermined cost, with undetermined consequences. Since then, Senator Obama has laid out a plan on the way forward in Iraq that has largely been affirmed by the bipartisan Iraq Study Group led by James Baker and Lee Hamilton.The excellence of our military is unmatched. But as a result of this war, our forces are under pressure as never before. Our National Guard and reserves have half of the equipment they need to respond to emergencies at home and abroad. Retention among West Point graduates is down. Our powers of deterrence and influence around the world are down. That is a cost of this war. His plan for ending the war would turn the page in Iraq by removing our combat troops from Iraq's civil war; by taking a new approach to press for a new accord on reconciliation within Iraq; by talking to all of Iraq's neighbors to press for a compact in the region; and by confronting the human costs of this war.
McCain- John McCain believes Syria and Iran have aided and abetted the violence in Iraq for too long. Syria has refused to crack down on Iraqi insurgents and foreign terrorists operating from within its territory. Iran has aided the most extreme and violent Shia militias, providing them with training, weapons, and technology that they have used to kill American troops. America's ultimate strategy is to give Iraqis the capabilities to govern and secure their own country. John McCain believes that only by controlling the violence in Iraq can we pave the way for a political settlement. But once the Iraqi government wields greater authority, it will be incumbent upon Iraqi leaders to take significant steps on their own.
Welfare:
Obama-There are 36.5 million poor Americans. Most poor Americans are in the workforce, yet still cannot afford to make ends meet. And too many poor Americans are single mothers who are raising children. Barack Obama has been a lifelong advocate for the poor -- as a young college graduate, he rejected the high salaries of corporate America and moved to the South Side of Chicago to work as a community organizer. As an organizer, Obama worked with churches, Chicago residents and local government to set up job training programs for the unemployed and after-school programs for kids. Barack Obama believes that all Americans who want to work should not only be able to gain meaningful employment, but should also be able to move up the career ladder to further support their families.
McCain- Lower and middle income Americans need more help. He supports the Reagan tax cuts, and the spending restraints associated with it. Require 40 hour workweek from welfare recipients.
Websites used:
http://www.ontheissues.org/default.htm
http://www.obama-mccain.info/index-obama-mccain.php#
http://www.nationalplatforms.com/index.html
Obama- Pro-Choice. He strongly supports a woman’s right to have an abortion. He trusts the woman to make an informed decision. Obama strongly opposes restrictions on medical procedures used during late term abortions.
McCain- Pro-Life. He is anti-abortion and believes that they should only be legal when the pregnancy resulted from incest, rape, or when it endangers the health of the mother. He would prohibit public funding of abortion and public funding of organizations that promote or perform abortions.
Budget/Economy:
Obama- He would require disclosure of all congressional pet projects and force lawmakers pay for any new spending or tax breaks through new revenue and cuts in other programs.
McCain- He will balance the federal budget by the end of his first term by curbing wasteful spending and overhauling entitlement programs, including Social Security. He would attack excessive government spending and reduce budget deficits through cuts in spending that do not finance Social Security, Medicare, and other entitlement programs.
Civil Rights:
Obama- In the US Senate he has been a leading advocate for protecting the right to vote. He would expand Hate Crime Statutes. Obama would combat employment discrimination by working to overturn the Supreme Court’s recent ruling that curtails racial minorities’ and women’s ability to challenge pay discrimination. He will provide job training, substance abuse, and mental health counseling to ex offenders, so that they can be successfully reintegrated into society. He would ban racial profiling by federal law enforcement agencies and provide federal incentives into state and local police departments to prohibit the practice. Obama would end deceptive voting practices by signing into law his legislation that establishes harsh penalties for those who have engaged in voter fraud and provides voters who have been misinformed with accurate and full information so they can vote.
McCain- Has expressed concerns regarding the implementation of affirmative action programs.
Defense/Homeland Security:
Obama- Five years after 9/11, our country is still unprepared for a terrorist attack. From improving security for our transit systems and chemical plants, to increasing cargo screening in our airports and seaports, the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission have been underfunded and ignored. The 9/11 Commission gave the government five F's and 12 D's on the implementation of its recommendations. Senator Obama is a member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and has supported efforts to base homeland security spending on risk rather than pork-barrel politics. He has also introduced legislation to strengthen chemical plant and drinking water security and to enhance disaster preparedness.
McCain- John McCain strongly supports the development and deployment of theater and national missile defenses. Effective missile defenses are critical to protect America from rogue regimes like North Korea that possess the capability to target America with intercontinental ballistic missiles, from outlaw states like Iran that threaten American forces and American allies with ballistic missiles, and to hedge against potential threats from possible strategic competitors like Russia and China. Effective missile defenses are also necessary to allow American military forces to operate overseas without being deterred by the threat of missile attack from a regional adversary.
Education:
Obama- Opposes school vouchers. Believes that “No Child Left Behind” has failed. He believes that the goal was the right one, but that it was not executed in the correct manner. He believes that teacher retention is a problem in nearly 30% of new teachers leaving their jobs within the first five years of their career. He proposes the “Zero to Five” plan to provide support to young children and their parents. His plan places key emphasis on early care and education for infants. He would improve quality and quadruple the “Head Start” programming and funding for the program. Wants to make math and science education a national priority. He would expand summer learning experiences. He would prepare teachers by requiring all school of education to be accredited. Wants to make college affordable by creating a new American Opportunity Tax Credit. Wants to streamline financial aid process by eliminating the current federal financial aid application and enabling families to apply by simply checking a box on their tax form.
McCain- Supports school vouchers. Supports sending federal dollars directly to local schools, cutting back on red tape and saving administration costs. Wants to place parents and children at the center of the education process and empower parents by greatly expanding the ability of the parents to choose among schools for their children.
Energy/Oil
Obama- Supports using more renewable energies, phasing out incandescent light bulbs and requiring new vehicles to be run on biofuel. He wants to look into clean coal uses as a way of freeing US from foreign oil dependency. Proposed giving US automakers help with health coverage in exchange for more hybrid production. Would invest $150 billion over 10 years in production technology and development of biofuel and other renewable energies. Wants to cut emission standards by 50%.
McCain- Supports alternative energies. Wants to look at more nuclear possibilities. Recently supported off-shore-drilling as a way to address the rising price of oil and gas.
Environment:
Obama- Believes global warming will bring devastating consequences if not recognized and stopped. Obama supports capping emissions and giving incentives to corporations that cut greenhouse gases.
McCain- He believes in global warming and that our nation cannot ignore it. McCain feels that cutting emissions throughout the market will force cleaner technology.
Gay Marriage:
Obama- Believes in gay equality. Is a supporter of civil unions, but not marriages. Believes that same-sex marriage should be decided by the state.
McCain- Supports same sex civil unions, but not marriages. Believes that the same sex marriage issue should be decided by individual states.
Gun Control:
Obama- History of supporting gun control. Supports a ban on assault weapons and concealed weapons. He would crackdown on unscrupulous gun dealers.
McCain- Opposes holding gun manufacturers liable for crimes using a firearm and has voted to protect gun manufacturers from such liability. Supports assault weapons and concealed weapons. Believes that banning ammunition is just another way to undermine Second Amendment rights.
Health Care:
Obama- A priority for Obama would be to promote affordable, accessible, and high-quality health care. He would mandate that all children have health care coverage. He would create a national public insurance program that would allow individuals and small businesses to buy affordable health care similar to what is available to federal employees. He supports universal health care. He would create a national health insurance exchange to reform private insurance market.
McCain- Opposes universal healthcare. He supports importing prescription drugs to lower costs. He would offer a refundable $2,500 tax credit and $5,000 for families. He would open health care markets.
Immigration:
Obama- Supports amnesty/permanent legalization for illegal aliens and temporary legislation for illegal aliens as guest workers. Wants to build a fence on the Mexican border. Advocates tougher laws to keep illegal aliens from finding jobs and would create a program for employers to easily verify an applicant’s immigration status.
McCain- Supports amnesty/permanent legalization for illegal aliens and temporary legislation for illegal aliens as guest workers. Advocates tightening of the border by increasing patrols. He would increase number of visas issued for agriculture workers.
Social Security:
Obama- Opposes privatization of the Social Security system. He supports the interests of the Alliance for Retired Americans. He believes the system is faulted, but can be fixed with relatively minor changes.
McCain- Believes Social Security is failing, because it is raided to fund other government programs. He supports allowing workers to invest a portion of their payroll tax in private accounts which they would manage themselves.
Taxes:
Obama- Would allow the Bush tax cuts to expire. Would raise taxes on federal gain and dividends and give tax breaks to low and middle-income Americans. Supports a universal mortgage tax credit of 10%.
McCain- Wants to make the Bush tax cuts permanent. Supports a simplified income tax system with two rates and a generous standard deduction. Proposed suspending the federal gas tax during the summer of 2008. Would reform estate taxation. Would forbid internet and cell phone taxes.
War:
Obama- Before the war in Iraq ever started, Senator Obama said that it was wrong in its conception. In 2002, then Illinois State Senator Obama said Saddam Hussein posed no imminent threat to the United States and that invasion would lead to an occupation of undetermined length, at undetermined cost, with undetermined consequences. Since then, Senator Obama has laid out a plan on the way forward in Iraq that has largely been affirmed by the bipartisan Iraq Study Group led by James Baker and Lee Hamilton.The excellence of our military is unmatched. But as a result of this war, our forces are under pressure as never before. Our National Guard and reserves have half of the equipment they need to respond to emergencies at home and abroad. Retention among West Point graduates is down. Our powers of deterrence and influence around the world are down. That is a cost of this war. His plan for ending the war would turn the page in Iraq by removing our combat troops from Iraq's civil war; by taking a new approach to press for a new accord on reconciliation within Iraq; by talking to all of Iraq's neighbors to press for a compact in the region; and by confronting the human costs of this war.
McCain- John McCain believes Syria and Iran have aided and abetted the violence in Iraq for too long. Syria has refused to crack down on Iraqi insurgents and foreign terrorists operating from within its territory. Iran has aided the most extreme and violent Shia militias, providing them with training, weapons, and technology that they have used to kill American troops. America's ultimate strategy is to give Iraqis the capabilities to govern and secure their own country. John McCain believes that only by controlling the violence in Iraq can we pave the way for a political settlement. But once the Iraqi government wields greater authority, it will be incumbent upon Iraqi leaders to take significant steps on their own.
Welfare:
Obama-There are 36.5 million poor Americans. Most poor Americans are in the workforce, yet still cannot afford to make ends meet. And too many poor Americans are single mothers who are raising children. Barack Obama has been a lifelong advocate for the poor -- as a young college graduate, he rejected the high salaries of corporate America and moved to the South Side of Chicago to work as a community organizer. As an organizer, Obama worked with churches, Chicago residents and local government to set up job training programs for the unemployed and after-school programs for kids. Barack Obama believes that all Americans who want to work should not only be able to gain meaningful employment, but should also be able to move up the career ladder to further support their families.
McCain- Lower and middle income Americans need more help. He supports the Reagan tax cuts, and the spending restraints associated with it. Require 40 hour workweek from welfare recipients.
Websites used:
http://www.ontheissues.org/default.htm
http://www.obama-mccain.info/index-obama-mccain.php#
http://www.nationalplatforms.com/index.html
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
I'm thinking about becoming the next big MTV star. haha
I would like to investigate the whole idea of the American Dream and how reality television seems to be corrupting it. I believe that reality television is taking over the lives of the common American, especially high school/college aged students. This issue is important, because television has slowly become an everyday vital part of our everyday lives. We schedule other activities around "our shows". Reality television is becoming this new phenomenon. You cannot scan through the channels without finding at least 5 reality shows on at any given time. What happened to the novel idea of scripted television? We have really seen the boom of reality television in the past five years. It is interesting to see which reality shows are actually scripted, like the very popular MTV show, The Hills… much of that is actually scripted. It may not have started off that way, but it has become a scripted show. Most of the reality shows, however, are not scripted. I think that the idea of the American Dream has been corrupted by reality television, because it is so easy for anyone to become a contestant on television, that they do not have to do anything of any value to make a career and get fast cash. Sending in a video of yourself for an audition process is not the equivalent of getting a college education and going through a real interviewing process. They are looking for the people they believe will drink the most alcohol, get arrested the most, and make the biggest fool of themselves in front of a national audience. This argument is in the form of a blog and will be available for my class to read and for the blogging world. People will be able to comment on my argument and make their own suggestions on the idea of the American Dream. It will show how consumed with reality television the American people are and how it hasn’t necessarily taken away from the American Dream, but has changed it and has corrupted the whole idea of achieving what is better for the nation as a whole, and allows a person to live a richer and fuller life. Using the thoughts and ideas from other bloggers, I will be able to get a better idea on what to include in my blog. I also will use blogs that are more related to the shows and give recaps and opinions on what happened each episode. Perez Hilton is notorious for making fun of the celebrities and I believe that it will add an interesting insight into my blog.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Real World. PHilt's BFF, True Life
In one of my classes today, we talked about the "American Dream" and if it were still feasible and attainable in todays society. I had to do a lot of research on the topic to really understand what it meant to have the American Dream, and I came across an interesting point about how reality tv and reality stars are in a way molesting the whole idea of the American dream. It really made me start to think about how reality tv has really taken over our lives and the television in general. How many hours a week do typical Americans sit in front of the tv set and watch reality show after reality show, I know that I am guilty of this, because as I sit here thinking of a topic for my public discourse paper and realize how relevant reality shows are to the topic, I am watching the newest episode of True Life on MTV. It tends to suck you in. And most of the time it is ridiculously stupid.
American Idol started off pretty legit, now they are seeing the same people they have seen for the past, what 6 seasons? The talent isn't getting better, people are just trying out for their 15 minutes of fame. Who really wants to be Paris Hilton's Next Best Friend? Seriously MTV how pathetic can you get. As long as these shows are available to watch, people will watch them. Which is what is most pitiful about the whole situation. Now, I'm not saying all reality shows are terrible, I don't think you would really consider American Idol one, but just along those lines of let's thing up the next stupid thing that Americans can apply for to make a fool of themselves and look like complete jackasses on tv.
The idea of the American Dream being molested stems from the idea that reality tv is giving the impression to my generation that they can sit on their asses, fill out an application, and make a million dollars on some reality show that has no merit and really won't get you anywhere else in life. How many times does Tila Tequila need to try and figure out if shes heterosexual or homosexual? How many Bachelors really found true love and didn't end up in divorce?
For my public discourse paper I am thinking about analyzing how consumed with reality television our society is today and how many different reality shows are out there and available for couch potatoes to watch. How about you get off your ass, stop watching the Amazing Race and get to the gym and work out yourself. Stop wishing you could be PHilton's new BFF, it's not going to happen she's going to treat you like a personal assistant and as soon as she realized you're not "Hott" enough, you're going to end up looking even more pathetic than you already do.
American Idol started off pretty legit, now they are seeing the same people they have seen for the past, what 6 seasons? The talent isn't getting better, people are just trying out for their 15 minutes of fame. Who really wants to be Paris Hilton's Next Best Friend? Seriously MTV how pathetic can you get. As long as these shows are available to watch, people will watch them. Which is what is most pitiful about the whole situation. Now, I'm not saying all reality shows are terrible, I don't think you would really consider American Idol one, but just along those lines of let's thing up the next stupid thing that Americans can apply for to make a fool of themselves and look like complete jackasses on tv.
The idea of the American Dream being molested stems from the idea that reality tv is giving the impression to my generation that they can sit on their asses, fill out an application, and make a million dollars on some reality show that has no merit and really won't get you anywhere else in life. How many times does Tila Tequila need to try and figure out if shes heterosexual or homosexual? How many Bachelors really found true love and didn't end up in divorce?
For my public discourse paper I am thinking about analyzing how consumed with reality television our society is today and how many different reality shows are out there and available for couch potatoes to watch. How about you get off your ass, stop watching the Amazing Race and get to the gym and work out yourself. Stop wishing you could be PHilton's new BFF, it's not going to happen she's going to treat you like a personal assistant and as soon as she realized you're not "Hott" enough, you're going to end up looking even more pathetic than you already do.
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