Genres of Reality Television
Documentary (Big Brother, The Simple Life, Bondi Rescue, Border Security, Meerkat Manor)
+ Hidden Camera (Punk’d, Candid Camera)
- In many reality TV programs, camera shooting and footage editing give the viewer the impression that they are passive observers following people going about their daily personal and professional activities; this style of filming is often referred to as fly on the wall or factual television. Story “plots” are often constructed via editing or planned situations, with the results resembling soap operas—hence the terms docusoap and docudrama. In other shows, a cinéma vérité style is adopted, where the filmmaker is more than a passive observer—their presence and influence is greatly manifest.
Competition/Game shows (American Idol, Big Brother, Deal or No Deal, The Biggest Loser, MasterChef, America’s Next Top Model)
- So-called “reality game shows,” which follow the format of a non-tournament elimination contests. Typically, participants are filmed competing to win a prize, often while living together in a confined environment. In many cases, participants are removed until only one person or team remains, who/which is then declared the winner. Usually this is done by eliminating participants one at a time, in balloon debate style, through either disapproval voting or by voting for the most popular choice to win. Voting is done by the viewing audience, the show’s own participants, a panel of judges, or some combination of the three.
Self-improvement/Makeover (Extreme Makeover, The Biggest Loser, Charm School)
+ Renovation (Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Pimp My Ride)
- Some reality television shows cover a person or group of people improving their lives. Sometimes the same group of people are covered over an entire season. Despite differences in the content, the format is usually the same: first the show introduces the subjects in their current, less-than-ideal environment. Then the subjects meet with a group of experts, who give the subjects instructions on how to improve things; they offer aid and encouragement along the way. Finally, the subjects are placed back in their environment and they, along with their friends and family and the experts, appraise the changes that have occurred.
Social Experiment (Secret Millionaire, Wife Swap)
+ Dating Shows (Matchmaker, Blind Date)
- Another type of reality program is the social experiment that produces drama, conflict, and sometimes transformation. Wife Swap which began in 2003 on Channel 4 and has aired for four seasons on ABC is a notable example. People with different values agreed to live by each other’s social rules for a brief period of time and sometimes learn from the experience. Other shows in this category include ITV’s Holiday Showdown, Oxygen’s The Bad Girls Club (lifestyles and actions), and Channel 4’s Secret Millionaire. Faking It was a series where people had to learn a new skill and pass themselves off as experts in that skill. Shattered was a controversial 2004 UK series where contestants competed for how long they could go without sleep.
Talk Show (The Jerry Springer Show, Dr. Phil, Oprah)
- though the traditional format of a talk show is that of a host interviewing a featured guest or discussing a chosen topic with a guest or panel of guests, the advent of trash TV shows has often made people group the entire category in with reality television. Programs like Ricki Lake, The Jerry Springer Show, Dr. Phil and many others have generally recruited guests by advertising a potential topic for a future program. Topics are frequently outrageous and are chosen in the interest of creating on-screen drama, tension or outrageous behaviour. Though not explicitly reality television by traditional standards, this sort of depiction of someone’s life, even if only in a brief interview format, is frequently considered akin to broader-scale reality TV programming.
Supernatural and Paranormal (Scariest Places On Earth, Ghost Hunter, Paranormal State)
- Started by MTV’s Fear in 2000, supernatural and paranormal reality shows place participants into frightening situations which ostensibly involve the paranormal. In series such as Celebrity Paranormal Project, the stated aim is investigation, and some series like Scariest Places on Earth challenge participants to survive the investigation; whereas others such as Paranormal State and Ghost Hunters use a recurring crew of paranormal researchers. Shows such as Fear Factor and Scare Tactics dispense with supernatural overtones and aim solely at inciting fear or aversion in the cast. In general, the shows follow similar stylized patterns of night vision, surveillance, and hand held camera footage; odd angles; subtitles establishing place and time; desaturated imagery; rapid fire, MTV editing; and non-melodic soundtracks.
+ Hidden Camera (Punk’d, Candid Camera)
- In many reality TV programs, camera shooting and footage editing give the viewer the impression that they are passive observers following people going about their daily personal and professional activities; this style of filming is often referred to as fly on the wall or factual television. Story “plots” are often constructed via editing or planned situations, with the results resembling soap operas—hence the terms docusoap and docudrama. In other shows, a cinéma vérité style is adopted, where the filmmaker is more than a passive observer—their presence and influence is greatly manifest.
Competition/Game shows (American Idol, Big Brother, Deal or No Deal, The Biggest Loser, MasterChef, America’s Next Top Model)
- So-called “reality game shows,” which follow the format of a non-tournament elimination contests. Typically, participants are filmed competing to win a prize, often while living together in a confined environment. In many cases, participants are removed until only one person or team remains, who/which is then declared the winner. Usually this is done by eliminating participants one at a time, in balloon debate style, through either disapproval voting or by voting for the most popular choice to win. Voting is done by the viewing audience, the show’s own participants, a panel of judges, or some combination of the three.
Self-improvement/Makeover (Extreme Makeover, The Biggest Loser, Charm School)
+ Renovation (Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Pimp My Ride)
- Some reality television shows cover a person or group of people improving their lives. Sometimes the same group of people are covered over an entire season. Despite differences in the content, the format is usually the same: first the show introduces the subjects in their current, less-than-ideal environment. Then the subjects meet with a group of experts, who give the subjects instructions on how to improve things; they offer aid and encouragement along the way. Finally, the subjects are placed back in their environment and they, along with their friends and family and the experts, appraise the changes that have occurred.
Social Experiment (Secret Millionaire, Wife Swap)
+ Dating Shows (Matchmaker, Blind Date)
- Another type of reality program is the social experiment that produces drama, conflict, and sometimes transformation. Wife Swap which began in 2003 on Channel 4 and has aired for four seasons on ABC is a notable example. People with different values agreed to live by each other’s social rules for a brief period of time and sometimes learn from the experience. Other shows in this category include ITV’s Holiday Showdown, Oxygen’s The Bad Girls Club (lifestyles and actions), and Channel 4’s Secret Millionaire. Faking It was a series where people had to learn a new skill and pass themselves off as experts in that skill. Shattered was a controversial 2004 UK series where contestants competed for how long they could go without sleep.
Talk Show (The Jerry Springer Show, Dr. Phil, Oprah)
- though the traditional format of a talk show is that of a host interviewing a featured guest or discussing a chosen topic with a guest or panel of guests, the advent of trash TV shows has often made people group the entire category in with reality television. Programs like Ricki Lake, The Jerry Springer Show, Dr. Phil and many others have generally recruited guests by advertising a potential topic for a future program. Topics are frequently outrageous and are chosen in the interest of creating on-screen drama, tension or outrageous behaviour. Though not explicitly reality television by traditional standards, this sort of depiction of someone’s life, even if only in a brief interview format, is frequently considered akin to broader-scale reality TV programming.
Supernatural and Paranormal (Scariest Places On Earth, Ghost Hunter, Paranormal State)
- Started by MTV’s Fear in 2000, supernatural and paranormal reality shows place participants into frightening situations which ostensibly involve the paranormal. In series such as Celebrity Paranormal Project, the stated aim is investigation, and some series like Scariest Places on Earth challenge participants to survive the investigation; whereas others such as Paranormal State and Ghost Hunters use a recurring crew of paranormal researchers. Shows such as Fear Factor and Scare Tactics dispense with supernatural overtones and aim solely at inciting fear or aversion in the cast. In general, the shows follow similar stylized patterns of night vision, surveillance, and hand held camera footage; odd angles; subtitles establishing place and time; desaturated imagery; rapid fire, MTV editing; and non-melodic soundtracks.
