Is Our Own Dysfunction the Reason We Feed Ourselves Reality Shows for Dinner?

Copyright 2013      Aleasa M. Word       All Rights Reserved
Every week I see people putting their comments on Facebook, Twitter and everywhere else about what’s happening on the latest reality show.  I must admit it has gotten to the point it seriously works my last nerve.  The reason……it’s not really the reality these people live of camera most of the time.   So many parts of these shows are scripted but we continue to swallow whatever mess they put on tv for us to see. 

Now keep in mind a lot of them start out with the intention of being “real” and use the real lives of the people they cast but they quickly evolve into something else.  The something else is a “ratings grabber.” Some of today’s parents have become so addicted to the shows they act like they know these people personally and get upset if you talk about them. They try to justify the actions no matter how outlandish they may be of the people on the shows.   And….so what if someone throws a drink in another person’s face – they deserved it right?  And who cares if women get into brawls pulling hair and clawing each other – that’s the way we live in the real world right? Yet we then tell our children, co-workers, employees and others this behavior is unacceptable. Many of these young people have grown up in a world that this IS ALL THEY SEE and what they know to be REAL!  They’ve not had the benefit of seeing anything else.

Subsequently we then wonder why our children are so violent today. We have become a nation who feeds our families crap for dinner by way of the garbage we accept as entertainment on television, radio and all over.  The excuse "it's just good fun" is only that - an excuse!  It's not your escape from reality when you believe it is someone else's reality.  I ask you the following:  

• Why is it ok to be entertained by violence or ignorance in a so called “reality show?”
  
  
• Why is fighting other people deemed acceptable entertainment, yet you then say it is reality?  So is everyone’s reality this violent, ignorant, racist, belittling  and why are we ok with it?
  
  
• In a society of racism, sexism, ageism aren’t we just supporting the behaviors  stereotypes by supporting these shows?
  
  
• Who are we to talk negatively about the characters on these shows that are simply doing what they need to do to get paid? Aren’t we just as bad for feeding into it?
  
  
• What does it say about our own behaviors when we think this doesn’t affect us but in fact it does because we are accepting dysfunction as normal?
  
  
• How does this affect us as parents who slowly accept violent behaviors, violent language, disrespect and ignorance?
  
  

We have a responsibility to ourselves and our families.  People say they aren’t influenced by the shows but are entertained. They say they know it’s not real but act like these people are their personal friends.  They have conversations about them as if they can call the on the phone and even blog to gossip about them as if they are people next door.
 
At what point do we stop feeding ourselves dysfunction for dinner? What goes in eventually goes out.  Valuing these shows increases ratings and makes the folks making money off of this think we want and need more.  Ask yourself this, is all of my intellect only worthy of the dysfunction of reality tv? If not, why do you continue to entertain it?