Many of us have tuned into ‘I’m a Celebrity’ this time of year, as well as other shows such as ‘Big Brother’, ‘Love Island’ soon, and many more. These types of shows brand themselves as ‘reality TV’, but how much reality is really shown?
We see only a snippet of the cast's daily lives on set, so what goes on behind the camera? How much of the drama is exaggerated? Reality TV is obviously not a true reflection of real life; real life doesn’t contain being stuck in a jungle, or any other weird scenarios that may happen. These shows have moments that are scripted, otherwise viewers may begin to find them boring, or repetitive.
Let's take Love Island for example, its constant drama and iconic moments are what keep viewers coming back, without these scenarios, who would want to watch it? But we never see behind the scenes, we get to see one hour a day of their whole day. So, what do they do in the other 23 hours? Whilst many past islanders have confirmed the show is not scripted, they have admitted to not being able to know the time, or producers sometimes telling them who to talk to, or that they should apologise. However, this does not apply to all reality TV, as so many of the shows we know and love are staged or exaggerated.
A student vote was conducted, and it was found that 67% of students have watched some sort of reality show in the past year, whether it’s a seasonal show, such as ‘Love Island’ or ‘The Apprentice’, or a show that is watched all year round, such as ‘Keeping up with the Kardashians’. This percentage may be lower than the number of adults or high school students that watch these shows, due to certain people having more time than others.
Overall, I don’t think we will truly ever find out what bits of these shows are actually reality, as past members and crew are possibly sworn to secrecy! ‘Scripted’ may take it too far, as that involves memorising lines and re-takes, however conflicts and drama are probably heightened to not disappoint viewers and uphold the show's reputation.