Mini Project 1- Marissa

No, I do not think we are all just itching to appear on reality TV shows. After conducting interviews with several of my peers, I was able to determine that there are still people out there who don’t want to be on reality TV shows, even if there are only 3 of them out there (all of whom are connected to me!)
First I asked my roommate, she is a 23 year old Drexel graduate. She rolled her eyes at me and said why would I want to act like a pathetic, attention starved wannabe on national television? Ok, then, that answers my question. So, I was really interested and wanted to know a little more. She said that when reality TV was first getting big she watched it all the time and reminded me of the hours we spent as freshman lounging around the dorms watching the Real World.
She also said that the longer reality shows were around and the more reality shows there are the cheesier they get. She used the example of Wife Swap and how another network created its own version of the show called Trading Spouses (she did not fail to point out that the title sounded almost like Trading Spaces). She was also able to name Nanny 911 and Supernanny.

I also interviewed my friend Sara who works as an intern at a small PR firm. She works mostly with artists and writers and doesn’t spend a lot of time following popular culture and television. She said she would never want to appear on a reality TV show because those people are always being followed by cameras and she could never give up her privacy. She didn’t think much about the people who appear on the shows, she just said it wasn’t something she could do.

My third subject was my mom. She said she wouldn’t want to be on reality TV show because she isn’t interested in 15 minutes of fame. She said she thought people only went on those shows to get their 15 minutes and make fools of themselves. I don’t know if I can totally agree with her, I guess it depends on the person’s motivation whether or not they are only seeking their 15 minutes or more. Look at the people on top chef or top design. They aren’t just looking for fame they are trying to win money and publicity to further their careers.