In the last few years, the Television industry has witnessed a new breed of shows called – Reality Shows. Among this category, there was a show aired called Big Boss. Well, I liked it like anyone else and never cared that my nine year old brother is watching it or not. Everything went fine until I received a baseball blow on my head from my brother. Of course! An innocent boy cannot be blamed for this malignant act and neither me because I always wanted him to become an engineer or a doctor. Then, from where in the world did he learn all this and ended up performing such a violent act? The situation deteriorated when we started getting complaints even from his school.
We understood the main cause…and to get a deeper insight, we did some more homework about the harmful effects of reality shows.
A reality show basically showcases the talent culled from ordinary people not from professionally trained actors. Although, the content may differ from humor to quiz contest…but still, it is considered as the most harmful type of television program on air right now. Psychologists consider Reality T.V. shows as toxic element for the society as they reinforce stereotypes, put actors and writers out of work, and desensitizes viewers. There is a lot of debate going on this topic as many shows we see today are violent and laden with sex at the same time.
People who support reality shows advocate that it is a sought of education for those who participate in quiz, dance, acting or music competitions. They also add that these shows on T.V. further teach how to handle peer pressure and many things which a child normally sees around him.
The show owners say that, “what will the children watch as even cartoons do not have intellectual content in it”.
There is also another school of thought which believes that the violence and language used can prove out to be very corruptive for a child in the long run. For this set of group, the after effects of reality T.V. shows are worse than the regular television programs.
So, there are the two sides of a coin related to reality shows – one, which allows a child to learn about the behavioral aspect of human beings, and another, which takes away the child's innocent dream world.
It can be safely said that all shows don't have harmful effects on the child. For instance, if one will see a dance or music competition, he can enjoy the real life struggle and hard-work of the contestants. In a way, one is getting to know about various dance forms and trends. But still, how to maintain equilibrium between the good and bad is the question which needs to be discussed. There are some reality shows which shall not be allowed to be watched by children of 1 to 12 years of age group.
Parents should also take necessary steps from their side by:
1. Limiting the number of T.V. viewing hours.
2. Encouraging the kids to do something other than watching T.V.
3. Keeping T.V.s out of bedrooms.
4. Turning the T.V. off during meals.
5. Enforcing the viewership rules displayed at the beginning of reality shows.
It shall be remembered that life is a little about drama, violence, and stupid stunts…but at the same time there can be fun, full of family with little alertness.
A reality show basically showcases the talent culled from ordinary people not from professionally trained actors. Although, the content may differ from humor to quiz contest…but still, it is considered as the most harmful type of television program on air right now. Psychologists consider Reality T.V. shows as toxic element for the society as they reinforce stereotypes, put actors and writers out of work, and desensitizes viewers. There is a lot of debate going on this topic as many shows we see today are violent and laden with sex at the same time.
People who support reality shows advocate that it is a sought of education for those who participate in quiz, dance, acting or music competitions. They also add that these shows on T.V. further teach how to handle peer pressure and many things which a child normally sees around him.
The show owners say that, “what will the children watch as even cartoons do not have intellectual content in it”.
There is also another school of thought which believes that the violence and language used can prove out to be very corruptive for a child in the long run. For this set of group, the after effects of reality T.V. shows are worse than the regular television programs.
So, there are the two sides of a coin related to reality shows – one, which allows a child to learn about the behavioral aspect of human beings, and another, which takes away the child's innocent dream world.
It can be safely said that all shows don't have harmful effects on the child. For instance, if one will see a dance or music competition, he can enjoy the real life struggle and hard-work of the contestants. In a way, one is getting to know about various dance forms and trends. But still, how to maintain equilibrium between the good and bad is the question which needs to be discussed. There are some reality shows which shall not be allowed to be watched by children of 1 to 12 years of age group.
Parents should also take necessary steps from their side by:
1. Limiting the number of T.V. viewing hours.
2. Encouraging the kids to do something other than watching T.V.
3. Keeping T.V.s out of bedrooms.
4. Turning the T.V. off during meals.
5. Enforcing the viewership rules displayed at the beginning of reality shows.
It shall be remembered that life is a little about drama, violence, and stupid stunts…but at the same time there can be fun, full of family with little alertness.
