Reality

Came across this question while channel-surfing.
"Sanjay Dutt has been married twice,
before his recent marriage.
what is the name of his first wife?"
What kind of quiz is that?
Sanjay is an actor and it is reasonable
to quiz one,on his acting career.
Why would someone ask a question on his private life?
And are people really interested in such talk?


Going by the number of SMS responses,
the answer is a resounding 'yes'.
People really are interested in such details.
Not just about Sanjay,but about others in general.
We may attribute is to the voyeur in each of us.
It may be a bitter pill to swallow,but as a society
we are a big bunch of voyeurs,preying in each others
internal affairs. The success of 'reality-shows' on T.V
is a tribute to our voyeurism.

There was an article on netscape that listed
the reasons why reality-shows were a hit.
1) Voyerism
2) Economy
A reality show can be produced at a fraction
of the cost it takes to make a prime-time soap.
The production cost is low because the people on reality
shows are not stars. They are ordinary guys/gals l
ike you and me. Most would go on-air for as little as ..
well,for nothing. They accept such low wages
because the show can transform them in to stars over-night.
Even if one doesn't go on to become a star,
he/she can still be happy because they will be
on prime-time T.V.

An important point the article missed-out
was the "rags to riches" part of the story.
We love to see someone like us sweat it out,
beat the competition and become a successful star.
It is inspiring and it gives one hope.
Everyone in the audience identifies with one of the
participants and celebrate the participant's
victory as their own.

So,reality shows are good,
good for the channels - because they can attract
more and more viewers at lesser cost,
good for the participants - because they become
rich and famous.
But is it good for the viewers?
Well,that depends on your view.