The Impact of Reality Television on Students
Many Fieldston students consume reality television, yet reality television is rarely seen as a topic worthy of classroom discussion at school. As a result, the materialistic and often misogynistic culture seen on reality shows such as Keeping Up With The Kardashians, Real Housewives, and America’s Next Top Model is free to take root in Fieldston social circles, with little critical engagement or guidance from educators, parents, or peers. Celebrity culture and reality TV needs to be treated as a Fieldston issue, and students in particular should be equipped to engage with popular culture in a critical and scholarly way.
The consumption of reality shows can have tremendous affect on psychology and development, especially for young people. As Reem Ibrahim writes in this article for Spirit Magazine, “Reality TV plays into a huge shift in our culture where kids say what matters most is fame.” Television shows often promote negative values and behaviors that are dangerous examples to follow. Keeping up Kardashians, for example, a show about the Kardashian family’s lavish lifestyle, places extreme value on physical beauty, sex appeal, materialism, and aggression and bullying. The Real Housewives, a popular show documenting the lives of wealthy house-wives, is based largely on gossiping, drama, backstabbing, and aggression within groups of supposed ‘friends’ living throughout the United States.
Reality TV is not gender-neutral, but rather display misogynistic or at least reductive views of relationships between women. Women in the reality shows mentioned above are portrayed as catty and gossipy, with particular value placed on “drama” and conflict among friends. These relationships, founded on dishonesty and pettiness, suggest to girls that this is normal behavior among women, and that it is in their nature to be competitive with their friends.
Gossip and drama within friend groups at Fieldston is fairly common, and presents as a problem for girls who are seen as “cliquey” or “catty.” This negative behavior and the generalization that girls as uniquely mean-spirited or dishonest could be a result of these types of shows. This has an impact on the way girls treat each other, and also the way girls are treated by Fieldston teachers and administrators. Yet the target audience of these shows is often women, and because they promote stereotypes, this may lead to girls thinking this is the way that they are supposed to act. This can also give younger boys the idea that women typically act this way.
Ultimately, reality TV is not an accurate portrayal of reality and shows are often scripted. Whether or not the audience is able to distinguish between reality and scripted moments often make all the difference in absorbing or rejecting problematic behaviors in reality shows. For all the risks associated with consuming problematic media, for many, these shows are just harmless forms of entertainment and demonstrations of what not to do in real relationships.
In writing this article, I was interested in incorporating the perspectives of other students as well as parents in the Fieldston community. What are the similarities and contrasts in their views of reality TV? To what extent to students consume media that their parents know about or can control at all? How are they thinking about the relationships and values portrayed on these shows? Students at Fieldston fall slightly below the target audience for most reality TV shows—including the Real Housewives franchise, which is geared towards an older audience. How do parents feel about this?
I was also interested in whether girls at Fieldston think that reality TV impacts the way that they act. In my research for this piece, I asked people how they think girls act, initially assuming that a lot of the answers would play into the stereotypes promoted on reality TV shows. I also asked how people react to characters behavior in reality show and if this behavior is reflected on their own relationships. What kind of reality is represented about how women act in real life? Below are the stories of girls who watch reality TV.
“I used to watch a lot of America’s Next Top Model when I was younger. The most dramatic scenes were always arguments between the models in the house. The show sets up the opportunity for this type of drama by putting many girls participating in a competition into one living space. Even though I was watching that show when I was young and impressionable, I didn’t see the behavior on the show as appropriate, and rather extreme cases and models of how I shouldn’t be acting.” — Fieldston Student (17)
I think that this is an interesting take on the subject that I would never have thought about it this way. It shows that different people are affected in different ways, in this case, the student saw reality TV as an example of what not to do. Reality TV was able to dramatize and exaggerate conflict in a way that illustrates its damaging effects. In this way, I think that reality TV can be harmless and even positive.
“I don’t think reality shows represents women well at all. Not all women are catty like how they are portrayed, and they usually aren’t dramatic to the extreme in day to day life.These shows don’t do women any favors in the eyes of society because they make people see women as annoying, problematic, and bitchy –which isn’t the image we want. They also aren’t good representations of reality in general but there are obviously exceptions in terms of ridiculously spoiled people who live in a small bubble — not even spoiled in the material sense but more just mentally. Women are able to have healthy non-toxic relationships.
I knows a friend who worships the Kardashians and treats them like the ideal women and the best way to live. She wants that “slim thick” Kim look and to be rich like her and have the rest of the world envy her for her money and lavish lifestyle. Most students don’t seem to be that affected by these shows, but there are always exceptions.” — Fieldston Student (16)
This contrasts from the first anecdote because it talks about reality TV in a more negative light. This student was engaging with the content of the shows, expressing concerns about how portrayals of “toxic” women could affect women in real life.
Reality TV is my guilty pleasure. It’s a mindless escape from everything going on in my actual reality. It is definitely not a realistic portrayal of life. I always refer to it as my ‘trash tv.’ I also consider it to be more for adults. I started letting my oldest daughter watch Real Housewives with me when she was a senior in high school and I don’t want any of my younger daughters getting too much into reality TV — mainly because of the influence. I think especially for girls, it can be so damaging on self esteem with all of the focus on body. When my middle daughter started watching Dance Moms, I was like ‘no.’ So I definitely have my judgements about it, its more of an unintelligible past time, hence ‘trash tv,’ *laughs.*” — Fieldston Mom (56)
Through my interviews, I realized that the effect of media on people depends on how it is understood and whether the person consuming it has the capacity to engage the issues. For instance, someone who is not familiar with the problematic aspects of the shows may be affected and influenced by them. But someone who is familiar with the negative stereotypes played out on these shows can watch and enjoy them, while still being aware that the behavior demonstrated in them is neither realistic or appropriate. While Fieldston cannot tell students what not to watch on their own time, through ethics classes and assemblies, students learn about gender and race stereotypes and how they play out in media. So while the issue is not addressed directly, most Fieldston students are most likely able to distinguish the negative aspects of reality TV shows if they watch them.
As a prominent school for young people, Fieldston has the unique opportunity to give students the tools to process popular media such as reality TV in a positive way. I think that it would help if Fieldston offered more media or gender classes that engage these issues critically. Since discussing reality TV and entertainment is typically not appropriate in most classes, this would lead to more opportunities and spaces to discuss popular culture. Overall, teachers could incorporate these issues into their curriculum. My recommendations to my fellow students are merely that we should be more mindful and critical when watching reality TV. How does the show you’re watching reflect on women at large? How does this show distort or affirm your experiences? What can we learn from reality TV that can inform the way you want to live your own reality?