How Social Media Changed Reality TV
The one with the remote has the most control.
It’s hard to think of a time before pop culture was dissected across social media. Twitter hashtags now steer office fodder and trends that were once decided by magazine editors are in the hands of the masses.
Television is a major indicator of social media’s impact on the entertainment sector. Successful television shows that don’t include some sort of social media element have become unimaginable. The sharing of memes, gifs, stickers, and sponsored emojis are now used as significant metrics of engagement.
Years after Flavor of Love went off-air former contestant Tiffany “New York” Pollard continues to reign as the meme-queen who launched millions of clicks, continuing to drive traffic to old clips of the show. The women of Bravo’s hit Real Housewives franchise keep churning out the reaction gifs the internet craves. The drama it craves.
While reality television has long been criticized as a low brow use of recreational time, it continues to be a pillar of popular culture. Audiences have come to enjoy the crass dialogue and dramatic behavior from reactionary, caricature-like castmates.
A seeming requirement for the most entertaining shows of the genre is that the stars act in every manner that anyone you know would never. Which of course, has lead to criticism of material being staged, scripted and sensationalized.
Ray Jay’s ever-moving hat during a minute-long clip on Love and Hip-Hop: Hollywood became a major topic of discussion about the effort put into production. Hawk-eyed viewers questioned the show’s authenticity and Ray J was forced to answer for the poorly edited clip.
Social media has become essential to the success of television as a whole. Viewers can boost niche interests to relevance, prevent a streaming service from dropping a heavily syndicated show and even resurrect canceled shows.
The proliferation of social media has brought to light the cracks in the facade of overly-produced television. Social media platforms like Instagram and Twitter provide audiences a front-row seat to celebrity drama in real-time. This makes it that much more difficult for producers to edit at their discretion.
When Khloe Kardashian was nine months pregnant, news of her then-boyfriend Tristan Thompson’s infidelity was made public. The scandal played out months later on Kardashian’s reality television show Keeping Up With The Kardashians. When a fan suggested the moment should have been kept private Kardashian responded that, “HE [Thompson] made it public. Not us. So I had to publicity deal with all of this.”
Kardashian’s response hints at the possibility that had the public not become aware of Thompson’s infidelity online, the scandal would’ve never aired on the reality show. Kardashian and her famous sisters (who executive produce their show) are no strangers to scandals and public backlash. Often opting to respond to large media events months later on television. Their platform has enabled them to tell their “side” of the story and “correct” misconceptions, while also profiting from it.
In 2017, when Kardashian’s younger half-sister Kendall Jenner received backlash after a since pulled Pepsi commercial was accused of trivializing social justice issues she went radio silent on the issue for months. When Jenner finally did speak on the matter she only did so on KUWTK. During the show’s 14th season premiere she tearfully apologized for any offense she may have caused. Her sincerity is vulnerable to scrutiny based on the time it took for her to respond and choosing to only do so on a platform that she can both profit from and control.
Still, social media has made the entertainment business and specifically reality television one where the audience has a great deal of power. Producers don’t get to fashion reality shows sloppily because drama is often already online months prior. Posts online can accidentally reveal continuity issues, forcing shows to keep up with its viewers. Reality television has been relegated to filling in the blanks the news cycle left out for viewers. Its job has become to provide the details to what you already saw on the timeline, read about in the tabloids or overheard in the grocery store. Producers are crafting storylines that lean into whatever behind the scenes vantage they can provide.
During Rachel Lindsay, the first African-American Bachelorette’s season of the “Bachelor” a contestant, Lee Garrett, was forced to address his controversial “likes” on Instagram. Social media users demanded Garrett answer for his past actions and questioned the commitment of producers to properly vet contestants who were to date to show’s first lead of color.
While reality stars tend to indulge in all that is typically unacceptable: frivolous spending habits, short tempers and verbal jabs they aren’t immune to public scrutiny. The source of their livelihood (their viewers) want not only to watch what they can’t do but have a say in it as well. Social media has enabled viewers to become unofficial producers. Their online noise steers interview conversations and ultimately determines what is allowed to get left on the cutting room floor.
Viewers are forcing reality television to become more honest through their online chatter. They are requiring the people in front of the camera to come clean or be canceled(both figuratively and literally).
Due to the delayed nature of reality television, its stars still have ample time to craft just what to share and and how to share it with viewers. Still, should they choose not to be completely forthcoming they’re at least forced to craft their stories more carefully.
Reality television thrives from drama but the unforeseen scandal aired out on social media can undermine manufactured storylines. Consequentiality, fans of this genre can continue to expect confessional moments where cast-members reveal “their truth” due to social media leaks.
Now when reality stars stare down the barrel of the camera to explain themselves, like a child asking for forgiveness, they’re reinforcing the viewer’s newfound authority. They know that viewers can choose to click, stream and buy whatever they’re selling or not. Audiences have settled into their newfound parental role with an awareness that entertainers rely on them to fund their livelihood. And, entertainers are being forced to acknowledge the increased reciprocity in the viewer-entertainer relationship.
