Ethics of Reality TV

Beginning with the new millennium, reality television exploded both in number of shows and in popularity. The scholarship on reality TV is beginning to catch up, but one of the most enduring questions about the genre--Is it ethical?--has yet to be addressed in any systematic and comprehensive way. Through investigating issues ranging from deception and privacy breeches to community building and democratization of TV, The Ethics of Reality TV explores the ways in which reality TV may create both benefits and harms to society. The edited collection features the work of leading scholars in the field of media ethics and provides a comprehensive assessment of the ethical effects of the genre.

• Foreword: "Serious Questions about a Not-So-Serious Genre". Part I: "The Harms of Reality TV," Wendy Wyatt and Kristie Bunton". Chapter 1: "Deception: I think my favorite reality show is lying to me". Chapter 2: "Privacy breeches: Maybe I should look away". Chapter 3: "Stereotyping: Here come the ditsy pretty girl and the troubled gay guy". Chapter 4: "Exploitation: Use them, abuse them and drop them". Chapter 5: "Excessive commercialization: What can we sell you this week?". Part II: "The Benefits of Reality TV," Wendy Wyatt and Kristie Bunton. Chapter 6: "Community building: Welcome to the neighborhood". Chapter 7: "Inspiration & motivation: If that reality star can do it, so can I". Chapter 8: "Diversification & Democratization: Even regular people can be reality stars". Conclusion: "Is reality TV good for society?" Wendy Wyatt and Kristie Bunton.

When 'reality tv' covers most of the social domain, it seems strange that we do not have more debates about the ethics of how it does this. Even stranger, when we consider the frequent conflicts between production goals and the needs of those who appear in reality shows. This lively book brings together both critical and more sympathetic assessments in a series of accessibly written essays that open up this important topic to students and general readers alike. --Nick Couldry, Professor of Media and Communications, Goldsmiths, University of London, and author of Listening Beyond the Echoes: Media, Ethics and Agency in an Uncertain World (Paradigm Books, 2006)