How does Hill define reality TV? Describe his definitions in the context of a contemporary Reality TV show.

Reality television can be generally defined as a television programmes that features individuals who are continuously filmed over a period of time that is designed with the purpose of being entertaining and informative (Biressi & Nunn, 2005). Several research has been done to identify and assess possibilities of whether or not reality television could be classified as a coherent genre.

Hill (2005) does not appear to state one specific definition to describe the genre of reality television – instead his approach takes on defining the genre in various phases and contexts. Perhaps one possible reason for this could be the fact that there are debatable discussions towards determining an appropriate genre category and the change in periodic media evolution (Hill, 2005).

He initially starts by generalising reality television as a variety of “factual programming” (Hill, 2005). However, this definition is somewhat contradictory to contemporary reality shows partly due to the various modern changes that have been implemented over a period of time. He states the meaning of the word ‘reality’ in reality television has progressed over time with difference in structure, styles and approaches employed upon a variety of subjects ranging from everything and anything to birth and death (Hill, 2005).

Hill (2005) also focuses on the broken barrier between fact and fiction in the reality television genre. He elaborates this by explaining the involvement of numerous generic contributions and continuous redevelopment of the genre. The concept of ‘hybridisation’ for instance, was proven to generate a significantly resilient market value with highly successful hybrid shows such as ‘Survior’ – a hybrid of observational documentary and a gameshow (Hill, 2005).

Hill (2005) also highlights the fact that television audiences make a significant impact on the contemporary reality television success rate – given the fact that is has become extremely popular more recently. He states that the central reason as to why the various subgenres of reality television are mostly an extensive range of occasional viewers rather than a disciplined regular viewing audience (Hill, 2005).

In conclusion, it is perhaps fair to state that the construction of reality television and its contemporary development depend on a number of factors that influence its complex definitive nature (Biressi & Nunn, 2005).

References:

Hill, A. (2005) The reality genre. In A. Hill, Reality TV: Audiences and
Popular Factual Television. (pp. 14 – 40). Oxon: Routledge.

Biressi, A. & Nunn, N. (2005). Real Lives, documentary approaches. In
Reality TV: realism and revelation. (pp. 35-58) London: Wallflower.