COMM 322 Final Project: The "Real" in Reality TV

I could not get the video to embed for some reason, so here is the link for our final project video..

Everyone's A Geek

The term "geek" has always had negative connotations. The stereotypical picture that is usually painted is one of someone who is socially inept, unkempt, and generally considered "weird". However, I don't think that is a fair representation of what a geek actually is. In my opinion, a geek is someone who shows a strong passion for something and is completely immersed in a particular topic, subject, or subset of culture as a whole. While this may include the traditional "geeky" things, (like Star Trek or Dungeons and Dragons, for example)geeks can come from all aspects of life. Take me for example. I am a self-proclaimed "sports geek". I am constantly checking stats, facts, and figures about not only my favorite teams, but other teams around the leagues. Every morning I make the rounds on the handful of sports websites that I frequent and often check them a few times a day to catch up on the latest news. I know I am not alone either. I have a friend who is so obsessed with sports culture that if you give him the name of any professional basketball player, he can name off what team they play for, what position they play, what college they went to, and in most cases, where they grew up. And sports are just the tip of the iceberg. Music, movies, automobiles, video games, all have strong followings that fit the description of a geek. I know people who are obsessed with food, computers, power tool, and pretty much anything else under the sun. All of them are geeks. The term geek, while not exactly viewed in a positive light, can be used to describe anyone and everyone who has a strong appreciation for something in their life. I am proud of my geeky tendencies and more people should be just as accepting as well.

The Reality of Reality TV

Reality TV has been around for a few decades, with many people crediting MTV's "The Real World" as the driving forcve behind the reality TV movement. At the time, people praised the "authenticity" of the show, claiming it was an unparralleled and unprecedented look into how "normal"people act. Audiences loved it and the rest of the media took notice. While the original creation that was "The Real World" may have been a pure and honest look at what real life was like (I honestly have no idea if it was or not), reality television has morphed into a whole new monster all-together, and a lot of people have no idea. In today's world, the media would lead you to believe that everything is merely captured as it happens and that the produces take a hands-off approach to the whole medium. This couldn't be farther from the truth. Almost everything you see on TV is a construct of the people behind the camera, rather than simply a retransmission of events that happen in the lives of the people who are followed on these shows. From items being planted in "Storage Wars" to the members of "Duck Dynasty" being fabricated exaggerations of a stereotype to the show of Discovery, TLC, and the History Channel claiming to be a source of educational programming, what you see on TV is not real. Even the show that started it all, "The Real World", has suffered from this creative control problem, with producers openly admitting to supplying the cast members with boatloads of alcohol in an effort to get them to make dumb decisions and ultimately increase ratings. The point of this post is to highlight that people need to take reality TV with a grain of salt. While some things may be somewhat authentic, you have to realize that there is someone standing behind the scenes barking out orders about what they need to see on screen. Reality TV is just as scripted as your typical dramas, but people need to realize that its not exactly what it claims to be.

Homosexuality and the Media

Times have changed. In the modern world we live in, those of "different" sexual orientations, such as homosexuality, are free to do what they want without fear of being judged, harmed, or persecuted for their actions and feelings. As such, the media has responded accordingly. Never before have members of the LGBTQ community have been so well-represented. What was once a taboo subject has now become a strong focus on the screen and on the internet. However, is the media just capitalizing on this new-found acceptance of homosexuality? In the past decade or so, the inclusion of gay and lesbian characters on TV and in film has risen dramatically. While on the surface, this would appear that the media has embraced homosexuals, a more in-depth analysis shows reveals something far more troublesome. What originally started out as an positive representation of the gay and lesbian community, one that showed the general public there was nothing to be afraid of while simultaneously empowering those who are of a homosexual orientation, has evolved into almost a joke. Now, it seems that the media is using gays and lesbians as a fad of sorts, only inserting them to help drive ratings up. While it is a positive to show those who may be different than the "norm", the way the media does it is almost sickening. In the eyes of the media, there must be an appropriate amount of gay to show. In my opinion, there are two ends to the spectrum of what is acceptable. One on side lies those who do not act as if they are gay. These people tend to do "normal" things and are forced to hide their sexual orientation from the world. On the other side of the coin are those who act flamboyantly gay. These people are proud of their sexual orientation and must share it with the world any chance they get. Both of these lead to problems in the sense that we have created a false reality where homosexuality is perceived as something different, rather than something that is normalized.

A Critical Analysis of the Bad Guys

As I have grown older, I have began to look more in depth at the media I consume, whether it be television, movies, video games, or any other sort of medium. One of the things that continues to nag at me is how villains are portrayed in the media. Popular culture dictates that the "bad guys" are souless, heartless creatures with nothing to live for and deserve to be punished for their actions. However, that is not entirely true. Many of these bad guys, especially when it comes to lowly soldiers or henchmen, are simply faceless beings who are expendable for the sake of some violence on screen. The first time I really critically examined this idea was after I watched "Taken" starring Liam Neeson. For those of you who haven't seen the movie, Neeson's character goes out of his way to find his kidnapped daughter, killing anything and everything in his path. As I watched this movie, I began to question Neeson's motives. Yes, he is trying to find his daughter, but at the expense of everyone else. These unknown, unnamed "thugs" are killed without question and the audience is forced to accept it. If you look outside of what you seen on the screen, it would be safe to assume that these people could have daughters just like Neeson does, so wouldn't it be almost hypocritical for Neeson to deprive their family members of their fathers, brothers, and husbands? I'm probably looking too much into this, but isn't that the point of this class? Aren't we supposed to look past what we see on the screen and see what kind of impact it has on our lives? The reason I bring this point up stems from the idea of the virtual citizen-soldier and how people are wanting to join the military for all the wrong reasons. Part of the reason for this, I believe, is that normal people do not see the impact that killing one of the "bad guys" has. Sure, there are plenty of people in this world who probably deserve what is coming to them, but is that really the case with everyone? The movies and TV shows we watch along with the video games we play never depict the other side of the coin, the side populated by countless swarms of "the enemy". We see them on our screen as something to hunt, almost for sport, and not as actual human beings. To put it into persepective, my cousin has served in the Army for almost a decade now. After a tour of duty in Iraq and another in Afghanistan, he has seen some very gruesome and disturbing things. As he has told me numerous times before, "war is not like it is on TV". Some of the most traumatizing and painful memories he has had to deal with involve the family members of the "bad guys" walking down the street mourning the loss of their loved ones. Even if they were the enemy, so to speak, they were still people at the end of the day. The point I am trying to make here is that we have become desensitized to the impact our actions have not just on the ones we directly affect, but their lives as well. I would love to see more media that shows you both sides of the story so that when the bad guy is killed, you are torn betwen wanting justice for his actions and the impact that their death will have on the world around them. Maybe then we can actually get people to realize that war is not a game, war is a reality that you may not walk away from.

Why I Want To Be In A Biker Gang

My favorite show on TV right now is "Sons of Anarchy" and it has been for quite some time now. From the moment I saw the pilot, I was hooked. For those of you unfamiliar with the show, "Sons of Anarchy" follows an outlaw motorcycle club in California as they navigate through the seedy underworld that is organized crime. As the show progresses, the club continues to make decisions that ultimately lead them farther and farther down a dark path of moral ambiguity. Part of the reason I love "Sons of Anarchy" is that the characters are all believeable. Mind you, you have to be willing to suspend your disbelief that a bunch of bearded guys in leather with a penchant for shooting first and asking questions later is considered normal. My point is that they seem human. Sure, they may live a lifestyle that is almost mythical, but the way they respond in certain situations is authentic, fueled by real emotion and the kind of bond you obtain by being by someone at their darkest moment. These characters have fueled a sort of para-social relationship that I (and I'm sure many other viewers) have created with many of the people on the show. Over the course of the 6 seasons the show has been on the air, I have formed "bonds" with many of the characters. When one individual's wife is accidentally gunned down, I felt deep sympathy and rage, just as he felt on screen. When another character was forced to watch powerlessly as his own daugther died in front of him, I felt the pain and anguish he did. And when a fan favorite meets his maker courtesy of a lead pipe, I actually felt sick to my stomach, just as his brothers in arms did. These kinds of emotional connections are what separates good TV from great TV and what keep people tuning in week after week. In addition, "Sons of Anarchy" portrays the ultimate counterculture. What is more anti-mainstream than ignoring the laws and rules that form the foundation of society? The members of the Sons are all portrayed as their own individual subculture, one full of sex, drugs, and violence and can easily identify themselves based on their motorcycles and their leather vests. However, just as it is in real life, by having a counterculture simply exist, it impacts how the mainstream culture acts. Throughout the show, numerous people attempt to emulate or join the motorcycle club, only to be immediately turned away or shunned by the members themselves. Not only does the counterculture influence the mainstream culture, in this case, the counterculture IS the mainstream culture. The way the show is portrayed, there is no other option other than to be in the club. Rarely do you see normal, upstanding citizens living their life. Instead, the only possible lifestyle is to be in the club and (for the most part) anyone who is not is singled out and dealt with accordingly. "Sons of Anarchy" has made me lust after Harley Davidson motorcycles, which is part of the point. The desire to be something we aren't has been played out time and time again, and television allows us to live these alternate fantasies as an escape from a our mundane lives. "Sons of Anarchy" does just that for me. I don't want to ACTUALLY join a motorcycle gang, but "Sons of Anarchy" is the closest thing I will ever get to being in one and for 60 minutes every Tuesday, I can imagine driving down the highway, next to my favorite people on TV.