T.V. game shows have always been successful. Who hasn't tried to
answer all of Regis Philbin's questions on Who Wants to be a Millionaire?
Who hasn't guessed the right price on The Price is Right? Everybody's
tried to figure out a puzzle on The Wheel of Fortune. These types of
shows are so popular that they have a channel that runs them 24/7. But
recently a new breed of game show has surfaced, reality game shows.
And they reinvigorate the concept completely.
Survivor debuted with a 25 audience share and has beat out every
other prime time show for the last two months. Road Rules was so
successful for M.T.V. that you could often watch it all day long in a
marathon showing. Big Brother always kept us coming back. And
Temptation Island was mischievously irresistible.
What is it about these shows that have millions of people glued to
their television set every week? You can't turn around without seeing or
hearing something about them. If one of the contestants aren't on the
morning show, they'll be on the late show. If they aren't on the cover of
T.V. Guide, you'll be sure to find them posing for People magazine. It's
clear that the public can't get their fill, but what makes for a good reality
1. Real People Yeah sure, the contestants on The Wheel of Fortune
are real people, but we don't get to learn very much about them. They
tell us their name, profession, hobby, and home town. However, on
reality shows we get to develop some sort of relationship with the
contestants. They show us several different sides of themselves and we
get to know a little more about them each week. We can judge them and
determine who's fun-loving, selfish, caring, mean, respectable, or
vindictive. Most we love, some we love to hate.
2. Real Circumstances Weather it's the outback, a deserted island,
...