Thus calling it reality, when really all it does is highlighting exciting parts of the show that were put there by the producers. .
When I watched this show it was very easy to see this happening. The broadcast began every time with a panning of the landscape, followed by a few shots of the cast offs engaging in life sustaining activities, such as fishing, cooking, eating. Then direct comments were shown. This is where the cast a ways spoke directly into the camera telling their story of a situation etc. You can see this same set up in each episode. Edits are made to the footage of only the exciting parts, and situations are exploited when really all they were, were something small. For example, when "Survivor" was in Australia two contestants had what we thought was a crush. But really all they had was a friendship. However, the producers created a "love story" in the outback. I saw this all to many times when watching this show. Its like they were playing God. "The retrospective tampering with the data was most obvious in the tribal councils the camera typically dwelled on the face of one of them, raising the suspicion that this contestant was going to be "it." (Ryan, 2001, p.10). So I find it hard to label this show as "reality" when all it seems to really be is fake. .
Survivor is not the only "reality" show that alters reality. Almost every single one does. When you click through the channels on your television you come across many different kinds of shows. However, I am not saying that all "reality" shows are fake. There are actual real "reality" shows out there. One good example is the show Cops. Cops allow a viewer to ride along with an officer and see them confront different criminal offenders. This show doesn't need to be edited to get your excitement; it merely just plays the video that it takes. A show like this has advantages to its viewers. This show may spark someone's interest in police work.
