It’s somewhat difficult to pinpoint exactly how or when this craze stared. Some say that we need not look any further than the ever-growing popularity of the home-video camera. It was with this device that we, as society, were able to witness everything from the Rodney King beating to “freak” boating accidents. One program, in particular, that capitalized on the proliferation of the camcorder was “America’s Funniest Home Videos.” The show, which debuted in 1990, “caught parents shamelessly exploiting their tumbling toddlers and costumed cocker-spaniels for the chance of winning $10,000” (Rowen). Since then, several spin-offs have been attempted for both daytime and primetime viewing hours, but none have enjoyed the success of their predecessor.

The latest crop of realty TV have come in the form of contests ala “Survivor”, “Temptation Island”, and “Big Brother” in which strangers are pitted against one another in a Darwinesque battle of the fittest. Of the three aforementioned programs, “Survivor” has proven to be the most successful, achieving a cultural phenomenon status while remaining relatively benign and family friendly. Temptation Island, on the other hand, can make no such claim. In fact, the show was viewed as so over-the-top with its sexual themes, that “many of its advertisers, including Best Buy, Quaker Oats, and Sears pulled their commercials from the controversial and utterly entertaining show” (Rowen).

Regis Philbin, best known for his morning show, “Live with Regis and (fill in the blank)”, brought the game show genre to new heights of popularity when he tried his hand at “Who Wants to be a Millionaire?”. In retrospect, “millionaire” wasn’t the typical “classic” definition of reality television but it certainly had similar elements: “real people, contrived situations (answer quiz questions to win $1,000,000), and low production costs. It proved to a successful equation. “Mil

Some topics in this essay:
George Orwell, Leopold America, Regis Philbin, , Home Videos”, Real Word”, Temptation Island, Rodney King, Oats Sears, reality television, “big brother”, reality tv, temptation island, nights week,