HELP! Someone explain the appeal of Reality TV to me?

I absolutely could not care less about Reality TV. I don't see why people watch it, but that's just me.

 

Broadcast television wasn't expanding their decency standards for scripted programming. Market research wasn't yet validating non-white or LGBT casts as ratings friendly. No one has ever had any idea how to program on broadcast for teenagers at prime time, but MTV was getting them 24/7, and Real World, Road Rules, and pop music were the easiest part of that to copy, other than Fox doubling down on animation by snagging Mike Judge.

The fact that reality TV also superficially doubles as real life news, and that online news websites expanded without convincing more people to give a crap about crimez, STONKS or other hemispheres, means reality TV recaps provide extra news content.

 

avoid tik tok , it's only getting worse

no talent is the trend here

 

Reality TV

 

I can't explain it, @Rocket River. Except for a few shows I rarely watch, but find relaxing when I do, I think they suck. An example of what I might enjoy? That show where a couple of guys go fishing at a really cool place, usually in a boat of some sort, but not always. Heck, there are probably a couple of shows like that during the day and I couldn't tell you the name of them, but if I'm channeling surfing, looking for something to watch and I run across one, I'll kick back and watch.

I've always enjoyed fishing. I like the water. I used to go sailing and water skiing. Growing up, a friend of mine had a couple of ancient great-uncles who came over from Germany with his grandmother at some point in time. They had heavy German accents. One served in a U-Boat in World War One. They were that old. Sometimes the two fellows would take my friend and I with them to Galveston and San Luis Pass in their rusted out Olds. We'd camp on the dunes, collect driftwood for a fire, and use beat-up oil lanterns after dark to wade out with gigs, looking for flounder. I loved it. Every once in a while you'd spot a stingray. Stars overhead. That flounder was delicious. I wonder if people still do that sort of thing?

 

The cleavage game on Masked Singer is very strong.

Also entertained by my wife stressing out while watching that show. She's pretty accurate on guessing the singers.

Again, the boob-canyonry is on full display.

 

https://www.tmz.com/2020/11/19/tikt...-backlash-dinner-video-chef-losing-followers/

CHARLI D'AMELIOCANCEL CULTURE'S GOT ME IN TEARS
11/19/2020 12:42 PM PT



YOUR WORDS HURT

Charli D'Amelio's crying a river after tons of followers canceled her ... and now she's wondering if she should just quit TikTok after encountering her first major PR hurdle.

Here's the deal ... Charli, TikTok’s most-followed star, is losing followers at a rapid rate after posting a family dinner video that rubbed lots of folks the wrong way. In part of the video, she complained to YouTube star James Charles about only having 95 MILLION followers, and not 100.

Fans are also pissed that Charli and her sister, Dixie, scoffed during their family's meal -- prepared by a private chef -- more spoiled brat behavior.

 

OP, I think the appeal is mostly to the producers who see a great ratings-to-production-$ ratio. Those shows must cost almost nothing to put together, given an infinite supply of people who will humiliate themselves for free.

 

back in the day you need have acting skills to be on a show, now you just have to be a drunk fool.

 

My best guess is for the cardashians and whatnot, is it serves as a surrogate for having actual friends in the age of disconnectedness.

You get all the emotional drama and can scratch the biological itches that drive you to want friends in the first place without the actual work and potential for rejection that is involved in having real friends.

Monkeys are evolved as social creatures and reality TV is a substitute for shut-ins. You can sit on your couch in your underwear and have a "social life" almost as good as the real thing.

 

people in today's culture want to be rich celebrities while not displaying any form of talent.

For example, being a great basketball player or singer or actor requires talent.

The Kardasians don't have talent but are rich socialites. They just know kids today want all the stuff they have.

Think about the Kylie chick.
She was insecure about her looks, what teenage girl doesn't.
Except she's rich so she can get a boob, butt, nose, and lip job and date Rappers.
Girls REALLY want to be her, so they buy her makeup that she licenses her name and image to.

What about Khloe?
She dates and marries promiscuous NBA players and cries after they have slept with other women or hookers.

These chicks aren't getting James Harden or Lamar Odom, that's their dream.

 

Putting a camera on attractive people doing things usually draws in money.

 

To me a competition show where you can win a prize isn't really a Reality show. I do like a few of those; Survivor, Masked Singer. I stopped watching The Amazing Race after seeing too many people get voted off over plane delays, flat tires, etc. Didn't like that playing strategy.

Shark Tank is its own show, and that's my favorite. Brings Reality to Reality TV, or at least tries its best.

Never have seen an episode of Kardashians. I recall a girl inviting me over for dinner a couple years ago. Vanderpump Rules was on (I think that's the name) She was still in the kitchen cooking so I tried to change the channel. Nope. She wanted it on. I seriously thought after watching it a couple minutes that she was doing this to try and screw with me, so I started making fun of every argument (there was one per minute) She has a conniption fit about how I'm not taking her show seriously. I ate dinner, tried my best not to mock the show but I couldn't help it, so I left. How anyone can watch 5 minutes of that crap is baffling. At least vote one person off each episode.

 

Networks like them because they are cheap to make because the on air talent aren't unionized actors.

 

Here's another one:

I love, love fishing. Why the **** would I want to watch people fish on TV?

 

Because it's better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick.

 

Ever been to the Selma?

 

A very cool video. Thanks! Yes, I remember it. We went by it a couple of times. Concrete boats/ships are interesting. Most people don't realize that you can build boats, or in the case of the Selma, large ships (large for the time) with concrete hulls. Concrete boats can be used for all sorts of things, Using one as a tanker seems pretty remarkable today.

During my somewhat eventful trip to Europe in 1971, a guy from San Diego that I had met at a sleep-in in Amsterdam, hanging out together for several weeks and doing some traveling together, introduced me to a small group of guys he went to college with. They had a really nice flat that took up a couple of floors of one of the narrow buildings that was along a canal in the old part of the city. We spent a couple of days with them.

The 4 fellows had lived in Amsterdam for well over a year. They were deep into having a concrete motorboat built that they had big plans for. A 40 to 50 foot motorboat with a diesel engine that they intended to run down to Morocco on business, but would mostly keep tied up along a canal, using it to live in. They showed us the blueprints and everything. I won't say what kind of business they were in, but key to increasing it's scale was this concrete boat. That opened my eyes about the use of concrete to build watercraft!

 

Since it's Thanksgiving, here's a good Holiday story: The Time the Nazi Came to Dinner

Early 80's-ish, so after the big meal we're chilling in my grandparent's living room in front of the fireplace and tv, great-uncle Vernon is in a recliner, I'm over in another chair, several other people around watching the UT or Cowboys game or whatever, and some random relative comes in to introduce his grandfather. Then people got to talking...next thing I know Vernon is mentioning the Battle of the Bulge and the Ardennes and all that, he's sat up in the recliner and started tapping his cane repeatedly on the floor and then says "YOU'RE ONE OF THE SONSOBITCHES THAT WAS SHELLING US" and almost started to try and get out of the chair (guy was about 85 at this point). "Oh no, no, we were just an infantry unit"...."OH, SO YOU WERE JUST SHOOTING US THEN? YOU ******* SONSO...."

At this point the poor guy realized he was not welcome and whoever he was with helped make his exit to the yard.

Funny thing is...other than that he never once talked about the war to anyone but his daughter.

 

Never been into pot, but I still know plenty that are, and I slightly envy them. I wish I enjoyed it, but it isn't something I've figured out.

I do recall 5 out of 7 flatmates in London going to Amsterdam nearly every weekend. When I checked the "smokers" box on my application I didn't know it would be multiple types of smoke. Lol.