Other library resource(s)
Reality television from Oxford Bibliographies Online by Call Number: Electronic resourceISBN: 9780199791286While we can locate the start of the most recent wave of American reality TV in the 2000–2001 season with the premiere of Survivor and Big Brother, the history of the genre reaches back to the very earliest days of broadcast television, with programs such as Queen for a Day and Candid Camera. The current, and perhaps most significant and long-lasting, wave of reality television developed out of a moment of financial destabilization for the broadcast networks. In an environment of rising production costs, intense competition from cable networks, and the appearance of a range of new digital technologies that threatened the very basics of the financing and production of broadcast television, networks welcomed reality formats—many of which were created and sold by European packagers—into their prime-time schedules.
Reality television from Oxford Bibliographies Online - Communication by Call Number: Electronic resourceISBN: 9780199756841Reality television, which can be broadly defined as unscripted entertainment programming, has existed since the emergence of television in the late 1940s. Hidden-camera programs, daytime talk shows featuring ordinary people as guests, and cop shows involving real police officers are some early strands of reality television in the United States and Europe. The late 1990s and early 2000s witnessed a surge of prime-time reality formats that combined the conventions of dramatic entertainment and documentary, including “docu-soaps,” reality sitcoms, adventure games, and makeover programs. ...
Reality TV: is it harmless entertainment or a cultural threat? from CQ Researcher by Call Number: Electronic resourceIn the blink of an eye, it seems, reality television has become a certifiable global pop-culture phenomenon. Critics generally dismiss it as a crude form of entertainment that appeals to the lowest common denominator, but reality television's high ratings and ability to create pop culture icons (and its low production costs) are undeniable. ...
Internet resource(s)
- reality blurred"reality blurred" is a frequently updated look at the world of reality television, edited by Andy Dehnart.
- Reality TV WorldReality TV World has the largest reach of any independently operated reality television web property and is the Internet's leading resource for reality television news and information.
In the Library's collections
To find books and other resources about reality television programs, use the subject heading "reality television programs" below. This subject heading can lead you to both the actual programs and books about the programs.
- reality television programsCall number range is PN 1992.8 .R4 through PN 1992.8 .R43 located on Baker Level 4.
Introductory reading(s)
Consuming reality: the commercialization of factual entertainment by Call Number: Baker-Berry HF 6146 .T42 D44 2012ISBN: 9780230379961Engaging in a comprehensive examination of reality TV's advertising and promotional strategies, as well as the commodification of viewers, Consuming Reality dissects the unique and startling relation between mediation and consumption.
Reality television: the television phenomenon that changed the world by Call Number: eBookISBN: 9781839090240Reality television is one of the defining genres of the 21st century. It is shown worldwide, features people from all walks of life and covers everything from romance to religion. It has not only changed television, but every other area of the media. So why has reality TV become such a huge phenomenon, and what is its future in an age of streaming and social media? This book provides an overview of key theories and debates in the study of reality television and discusses industry practices in their global and national contexts. ...
Reality TV: remaking television culture by Call Number: Baker-Berry PN 1992.8 .R43 R45 2009ISBN: 9780814757338The Apprentice. Project Runway. The Bachelor. My Life on the D-list. Extreme Makeover. American Idol. It is virtually impossible to turn on a television without coming across some sort of reality programming. Yet, while this genre has rapidly moved from the fringes of television culture to its lucrative core, critical attention has not kept pace. Beginning by unearthing its historical roots in early reality shows like Candid Camera and wending its way through An American Family and The Real World to the most recent crop of reality programs, Reality TV is one of the first books to address the economic, visual, cultural, audience, and new media dimensions of reality television and has become the standard in the field. ...
The triumph of reality TV: the revolution in American television by Call Number: Baker-Berry PN 1992.8 .R43 E49 2013ISBN: 9780313399015This book provides an up-to-date account of how reality TV has developed, why it has become the most popular genre on television today, and how the explosion in reality TV signals new developments in American media culture. The reasons behind reality TV's continued popularity go beyond the sensationalism and low production cost of these programs: there is much more to the genre's continued success than just escapism or "guilty pleasure" TV. The Triumph of Reality TV: The Revolution in American Television identifies and explores five key media trends reality TV has used to continually draw in viewers and ensure success. ...
The tube has spoken: reality TV & history by Call Number: Baker-Berry PN 1992.8 .R43 T83 2010ISBN: 9780813125534Featuring ordinary people, celebrities, game shows, hidden cameras, everyday situations, and humorous or dramatic situations, reality TV is one of the fastest growing and important popular culture trends of the past decade, with roots reaching back to the days of radio. The Tube Has Spoken provides an analysis of the growing phenomenon of reality TV, its evolution as a genre, and how it has been shaped by cultural history. ...
Selected book title(s)
An American family: a televised life by Call Number: Baker-Berry HQ 536 .R86 2002ISBN: 9780816635603This book is the first to offer a close, sustained look at An American Family, the documentary that blurred conventions, stirred passions among viewers and reviewers, revised impressions of family life and definitions of private and public, and began the breakdown of distinctions between reality and spectacle that culminated in cultural phenomena from The Oprah Winfrey Show to Survivor. While placing Craig Gilbert’s innovative series in the context of 1970s nonfiction film and television, Jeffrey Ruoff tells the story behind An American Family from conception to broadcast, from reception to long-term impact.
Ghost channels: paranormal reality television and the haunting of twenty-first-century America by Call Number: eBookISBN: 9781496838117Through American history, often in times of crisis, there have been periodic outbreaks of obsession with the paranormal. Between 2004 and 2019, over six dozen documentary-style series dealing with paranormal subject matter premiered on television in the United States. Combining the stylistic traits of horror with earnest accounts of what are claimed to be actual events, "paranormal reality" incorporates subject matter formerly characterized as occult or supernatural into the established category of reality TV. Despite the high number of programs and their evident popularity, paranormal reality television has to date received little critical attention. Ghost Channels: Paranormal Reality Television and the Haunting of Twenty-First-Century America provides an overview of the paranormal reality television genre, its development, and its place in television history. ...
The pop music idol and the spirit of charisma: reality television talent shows in the digital economy of hope by Call Number: Baker-Berry PN 1992.8 .R43 C84 2015ISBN: 9781137494450This book makes a case for the synergetic union between reality TV and the music industry. It delves into technological change in popular music, and the role of music reality TV and social media in the pop production process.
Reality squared: televisual discourse on the real by Call Number: Baker-Berry PN 1992.8 .R4 R43 2002ISBN: 9780813529882Through the 1980s and 1990s, the television industry and its critics have identified and promoted the re-emergence of "reality-based" television. During the past two decades, this type of programming has come to play a major role in both production decisions and network strategy. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, viewers' desire for "reality TV" shows no signs of diminishing, as evidenced by the meteoric rise of shows such as Who Wants to be a Millionaire, Survivor, and MTV's Real World. Although debates concerning the relationship between representational media and reality have occupied scholars and artists for quite some time, a surprisingly small number of books have examined this subject. As the title suggests, Reality Squared examines the representation of reality within the squared televisual viewing frame, as well as the exponential growth of these representational programs on broadcast, cable TV, and even beyond, to the worldwide web. The contributors approach the issues surrounding television and reality from a wide range of theoretical and methodological perspectives. ...
Reel politics: reality television as a platform for political discourse by Call Number: Baker-Berry PN 1992.8 .R43 R44 2010ISBN: 9781443819152In the mid-1980s, Neil Postman claimed that television made entertainment the natural format for the representation of all experience. While Postman's argument still is pertinent to a description of contemporary television shows, it also seems increasingly more accurate to argue that reality-based entertainment is quickly becoming the referential format for televisual representations of our experience in the 21st century. Chapters in this edited volume explore reality television's place within contemporary media landscape in terms of its potential for political engagement. ...
Understanding reality television by Call Number: Baker-Berry PN 1992.8 .R43 U53 2004ISBN: 9780415317948'Popular Factual Programming' has rapidly come to occupy a place at the forefront of contemporary television culture on an international scale. Tracing the history of reality TV from Candid Camera to The Osbournes, Understanding Reality Television examines a range of programmes which claim to depict 'real life', from reality formatted game shows to 'real crime' programming and make-over TV. Contributors discuss the phenomenon of reality TV in the context of the debates it has introduced to our social, cultural and televisual agendas, such as the construction of celebrity, fandom, surveillance and the politics of representation.
Finding scholarly articles & journal titles
Articles and other writings about reality television can be found in many publications. Our collection does not include a magazine or journal title which looks exclusively at reality television. You can use Film & Television Literature Index to find articles or use the search box at the top of the page.
Film & television literature index by Call Number: Electronic resourceUse this index to find articles about this TV genre.
The web of science citation databases by Call Number: Electronic resourceThe online version of 3 separate ISI indexes: Arts & Humanities Citation Index, Science Citation Index and, Social Sciences Citation Index.
Selected reality shows
The Library does not specifically collect actual reality programs. However, selected courses may use or have used certain titles. Those are what we have in the collection.
30 days. Season 1 by Call Number: Jones Media DVD #7525The first season of filmmaker/provocateur Morgan Spurlock's "30 days", a television program in which average Americans choose to live a different lifestyle for 30 days in order to better understand different cultures.
Black. White by Call Number: Jones Media DVD #6606What's it like to live in someone else's skin? Find out by watching this fascinating documentary series in which the African-American Sparks family ... trades places with the Caucasian Wurgel family.- FX Black White casting special byCall Number: Streaming video
Hoarders. The complete season one by Call Number: Jones Media DVD #10535Looks "inside the lives of people whose inability to part with their belongings is so out of control that they are on the verge of a personal crisis. Whether they're facing eviction, the loss of their children, jail time, or divorce, these hoarders are desperately in need of help.
Miami ink. [Season one] by Call Number: Jones Media DVD #5096A group of old friends, a motley crew of cutting-edge, humorous and well-regarded young guys, get together to open a tattoo parlor in South Beach.
Keeping up with Television Studies journal literature
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