"this zoo . . . this reality . . . this whatever . . . sickens me"
-- Agent Smith speaking to Morpheus in the movie, The Matrix
During September and October, 2001, the Fox Television Network aired a program called The Love Cruise. This show was the latest entry into the growing trend of "reality television." The premise of the show is that 16 singles were selected to cruise on a ship through the Caribbean Sea, stopping at various ports for drinking, dancing and activities. During this time, the singles are paired up and encouraged to develop intimate relationships. At the end of each day/episode, the men get together and vote a woman off the boat and the women vote off a man. The last couple standing at the end will get $200,000 and a trip around the world.
Though this "reality" contest is a unique one, this program shares similar elements with other reality shows such as CBS' Survivor and Big Brother, MTV's The Real World, NBC's Fear Factor, ABC's The Bachelor and many many others. Below are five lessons I learned from watching The Love Cruise. Think about them the next time you watch a television program that claims to be "based-in-reality." Think of these "lessons" as reasons why reality TV is not real.
Lesson #1: Reality TV is not about reality.
One of the characters on The Love Cruise, Anthony, said: "Love doesn't really
exist on The Love
Cruise. Unfortunately, I'm beginning to learn the same lesson on this ship as
I did in life. That people have agendas that aren't necessarily fair." Anthony,
whether he knew it or not, hit upon the core of these style of shows. There
is nothing noble about television programs. They are simply aired to promote
a product or lifestyle. In the case of The Love Cruise, people acted for personal
gain -- they want to win the game.
"This is not about love, it's about greed," said my friend Paul as we watched one of The Love Cruise episodes. Paul got it right. The Love Cruise is about greed. Who can get it all? Who can capture both love and money? Who will win? Which person will be greedy enough to sacrifice pride for the prize? Reality TV is about greed.
Lesson #2: In life, there is nothing win. There is no ultimate prize. Many TV shows have a goal or prize. On The Love Cruise, the goal was $200,000 and a trip around the world. On the show Survivor, the prize is $1 million. There is nothing "real" about this premise. In life, what is the prize? Are we all competing for something?
This idea creates a false impression of life. There is an old humorous adage that goes, "The one who dies with the most toys wins." This is funny because once you're dead, does it matter? Isn't it more important to contribute something to society than simply acquire items for personal gain? Think about people we revere for their accomplishments throughout human history: Plato, William Shakespeare, George Washington, Martin Luther King, Albert Einstein, Gandhi, Confucius, etc. Do we honor the memory of these people because they had the most money? Or do we honor them because they contributed something to our lives in powerful ways? It's not the one who wins that will be remembered, but the one that does something more than only serve himself/herself.
Television
shows about money and greed are simply that. Nothing more. The Love Cruise was
just a soap opera with a flexible script.
Lesson #3: Life does not have a soundtrack. Music is a key component of any television program. Music sets the mood and delivers the tone of a comment or argument. Each scene in a television program is carefully choreographed and planned. Music is added. When in danger: spooky music. When in lust: romantic music. When in competition: fast beat music. Music keeps the viewer interested and allows the editor to tell a story with the video.
Lesson #4: On TV there are no mistakes. Television programs are edited and pieced together to tell a story. Programs such as The Love Cruise and Survivor only show a small portion of what actually took place. They are like soap operas, but with a flexible script.
Lesson #5: There are cameras in their faces.
The people on TV are actors. They have cameras in their faces with camera
crews around them and lighting equipment and boom/sound operators and grips
and gaffers and electricians and all the other jobs needed to produce a good
program. Nobody is "real" when acting in front of a camera. On The Love Cruise,
someone would cry in almost every episode; they did this because they wanted
to progress the story line. 
The characters on television are beautiful people. They are people who will look good on television. There may be one average-looking person on a "reality" show, but most people are great looking. This is not real. Cameras in their faces is not real. It is pretend. It is make-believe.
Why present these lessons? Well, oftentimes, people may confuse television with real life. Not consciously, but in the back of their minds television may be perceived as "the way life is in some ways." The danger of trying to promote television as "reality" is the same as The Beautiful People Syndrome. There is nothing real about images on television. Television is presented to sell things and to promote advertising. It may entertain also, but only to the extent that people watch. When no one tunes in, the fantasy ends.
© 2002 By Ron Kaufman
