1. Marianna
Vitale
Period 7

2. What Is Reality TV?
• Reality TV shows are unscripted and candid
• People in reality television shows are not
actors and they are not paid to portray a
certain character

3. Popularity of Reality TV
• Reality TV became
popular in the late 90’s
and early 2000’s with
shows like The Real
World and American Idol
• 40 Percent of prime time
television shows are
classified as reality
shows (Barnhart)

4. Negative Effects of Reality Television
• Shows like MTV’s 16 & Pregnant and Teen Mom, glamorize teenage
pregnancy.
• Teenage girls believe that if they become pregnant, they will get famous
with their own TV show.
• Amber Portwood, star of MTV’s Teen Mom, makes about $280,000 per
year between her MTV salary, endorsement deals, interviews, and other
fame related events. (Dr. Phil)

5. Negative Effects of Reality Television
• Jersey Shore, another product of MTV, constantly
promotes indoor tanning
• Since the show aired, there has been a 22% increase
in the popularity of tanning salons (Seventeen.com)

7. The Interview
My mom works ata local NYC high school. She deals with
teenagers who watch reality TV everyday. She believes
reality TV influences the students in her school.
Me: Who do you think is more influenced by reality TV,
boys or girls?
Mom: Definitely the girls. Reality TV shows like Real
Housewives and Keeping Up With The Kardashians
constantly glamourize plastic surgery & endorse it. They
feed off of young girls self esteem issues. Girls constantly
complain about their hair, body, and anything else they
think is wrong with them. I’ve seen girls as young as 15 go
through plastic surgeries, wanting to look perfect.
Me: Do you think reality TV relates to how your students
act towards each other and the staff?
Mom: Definitely. Reality TV shows that feature physical
fights between the stars have a lot to do with the physical
fights between students. I personally believe that if a
teenager sees it happening on TV, with no consequences
for their actions, then they believe it’s okay.

8. The Interview (Continued)
Me: Do you watch reality TV?
Mom: I do, but I’m more into the
competition shows like Survivor and
American Idol. The drama of Real
Housewives of New Jersey is good once in a
while, but it gets old very quickly.
Me: Do you think parents should monitor
what their kids watch?
Mom: In a perfect world, sure. But it’s not
very realistic. Between Netflix, TV’s in every
room and the 100+ channels to choose
from, it’s not very likely that you can control
everything your child watches. With that
being said, parents should be kept up to
speed with current shows and look into
them so they know what their children are
watching. Parents should have open
communication with their children about
what they are watching.

9. Watching Reality TV Lowers Self-
Esteem?
• Journalist Gregory Gwyn-Williams, Jr. wrote an article for CNN about a
study done on Reality TV and Self Esteem. He found that through a poll of
19,000 people, the ones who watched reality TV shows that didn’t involve
a competition (Hell’s Kitchen, The Voice, Big Brother, etc…) have lower self
esteem and are extroverted compared to those who watch those shows.

10. Questions?
• What shows are considered reality shows?
• Are some reality shows scripted?
• Are all effects of reality shows negative?
• Do you think the FCC should provide harsher
rules for reality shows to follow?

11. Want More Information?
• Psychology Magazine
• Seventeen.com
• http://www.statisticbrain.com/television-
watching-statistics/

12. Work Cited
Barnhart, Aaron. "How Reality TV Took over Prime Time Read More Here:
Http://www.kansascity.com/2010/12/04/2497484/how-reality-tv-took-over-
prime.html#storylink=cpy." Kansascity.com. N.p., n.d. Web.
<http://www.kansascity.com/2010/12/04/2497484/how-reality-tv-took-over-prime.html>.
"The Real Teen Mom: Alarming Statistics." Drphil.com. N.p., n.d. Web.
http://drphil.com/articles/article/684>
"Jersey Shore Boosts Tanning Companies." Seventeen.com. N.p., 29 July 2010. Web.
<http://www.seventeen.com/fashion/blog/jersey-shore-tanning>.
Gwyn-Williams, Gregory, JR. "Reality Show Viewers Are More Neurotic, Have Lower Self-Esteem,
Study Finds." Cnsnews.com. N.p., 13 Dec. 2012. Web. <http://cnsnews.com/blog/gregory-gwyn-
williams-jr/reality-show-viewers-are-more-neurotic-have-lower-self-esteem-study>.