Reality TV part 3

Today, almost every proffession is a reality show from parking meter maids, swamp gator farmers and even house wives whose sole purpose seems to be -just being alive. This is what prompted this series of blogs in the first place -I might as well just start following people and see what they do all day. It would probably be just as entertaining.

What concerns me are the dangerous, violent and confrontational shows like Ice Road Truckers or Axmen. These are shows that follow dangerous jobs, but are people tuning in for the triumph or the possibility of disaster? Is the threshold being pushed further and further towards the line that borders entertainment and sadism?

Most reality shows today involve a very high level of danger, none more so than Discovery Channel's Deadliest Catch. Crab fishing in the Bearing Sea is the most dangerous job according to the US senses bureau. So maybe it begs the debate; are the producers interested in the fishing or are they hoping to capture some dramatic "real" moments that could result in death? Why is it entertaining?

Our level of shock and awe is rising at an alarming rate where I don't even flinch if someone gets shot or punched in the head in a non-reality TV drama. It's consistently taking more and more daring things to entertain us. And, it's not just drama we want. We want the real thing, we want real blood and real pain. For me, personally, the line was drawn with the death of Sea Captain Phil Harris on The Deadliest Catch. In his last two seasons we saw him dealing with stroke like symptoms as his two feuding sons watched. It was his wish to keep filming, the producers honoured his decision and in the next season he passed away in front of 8.5 Million viewers.

Personally, I thought the decision to keep rolling was Harris' legacy. I would never have known a wonderful man like him if they hadn't. But it does beg the question as to what the line is? It was a man's death, albeit his wish, was a line crossed? Does it matter that it was the third highest rated broadcast ever in Discovery Channel history? All I know is that stuff that used to shock me doesn't anymore and I'm not quite sure if that's a good thing.