Is Reality TV and the recent release of the movie “300” any indication of our culture?
I have satellite TV with a slew of channels, and I must say there are few things that I tune in regularly to see. The ones I do sample are The Daily Show and Colbert Report on Comedy Central, Sunday Morning and 60 Minutes on CBS, the BBC and many of the science and investigative journalism programming on PBS, all of which try to uncover a glimpse of reality that isn’t staged. But don’t think I’m all facts and no fun; I do like The Office (which is actually a clever spoof on reality shows), and that loveable, quirky genius we know as House. Also I must confess to watching the well-produced soap opera’s on HBO like the Soprano’s, Rome and Big Love.
Now that I’ve shared with you some of the more memorable TV offerings from our cultural stream of consciousness, let me get back to my original question as to the state
of our culture.
They say that art “Art imitates reality”, and if that is true, our reality television is telling us our reality is staged and for sure the movie “300” is telling us we lust for violence. Of course there are a lot more meaningful forms of entertainment, but when you look at the big hitters out there it does cause you to pause and make you wonder if these forms of art are accurate representations of our psyche.
Margot R. Luby
Associate Creative Director
All I know is it seems that so often the quality shows that I really like get cancelled for lack of viewership. Meanwhile, lowbrow shows that I despise (like wife swap and cops) seem to thrive. Is it me or the great unwashed masses that are wrong?
I think it may have something to do with an overall desire to watch bad people suffer in order to make ourselves feel a little better. Like the persians in 300, the criminals on Cops, or any douchebag roomate on MTV’s the Real world. I know if I ever watch cops the main thing that is always going through my mind is “My life is good compared to this.” It makes me wonder if Datelines NBC’s “To Catch a predator” is so successful because of the crime it prevents. Or the fact that it feels sooo good to watch those perverts get busted and see their real, unscripted reactions.
“No one ever went broke underestimating the taste of the American public.”
-Henry Louis Mencken
Oh puh-leeze people. Get off your damn high horse. I’m sure there are shows that you watch that the rest of us think are stupid and that your stupid for watching them. Maybe the TV shows you like get cancelled cuz THEY SUCK! And aren’t you guys an advertising agency. You people create half the shit we have to wathc on TV!