I was watching The Real Housewives of Atlanta one day and I honestly could not believe that I had stooped so low as to watch this program. In fact, I ask myself, what is the allure for anyone to watch "fake reality" shows? The reason why I say "fake reality" is because these so-called reality shows are centered on a certain theme or a scripted event. Nothing is truly real.
I teach diversity and inclusion at a major transit agency in the Washington, DC metropolitan area, and I am amazed at the people who not only have never been outside the United States, but have not been outside of the DMV (Delaware, Maryland and Virginia -- Washington, DC is included in this area). We can look at the television and pick up all sorts of preconceived ideas about different cultures. However, what really bothers me is that while you keep up with those Kardashians, the world is spinning and not waiting for anyone to become acquainted with the fact that the Amazon is in danger, or that indigenous peoples across the globe are being forced out of their native lands by large corporations for profit.
If you really want to look at reality shows, turn on the Discovery Channel, NatGeo or Animal Planet. Hell, turn on Anthony Bourdain, Parts Unknown! Animal cruelty is very real and a very big problem. It also may surprise you to see what people eat in their native countries and what is considered a delicacy. Each week, Anthony Bourdain takes a look at different cultures and what is a considered a "classic home cooked meal" in that country. I continue to be in awe of Shark Week, and Blue Planet on the Discovery Channel. I love watching River Monsters because I did not know how many different varieties of really crazy looking and dangerous fish there are in different parts of the world and even in our own waters. What about what is going on in the Ganges? Do you know? Destination Wild can tell you all about it.
The point of all this is that we are allowing our collective intelligence (or what little there is left of it) slip away by watching senseless television and creating fake entertainment that will ultimately not line your pocket, but line the pockets of these "reality" stars and genuinely make you stupid in the process. I asked earlier what the allure was for these "reality" shows for people want to watch them religiously each week. Is it that this is what we imagine how the "other half" lives? Is this how we think people of a higher net-worth deal with their problems? Or perhaps, for some, in some narrow stretch of your imagination, you want to emulate this nonsense? Absolutely none of this is endearing. Here is a better idea. Go to your local library, get a subscription to National Geographic or a go to a free museum in your community just to walk around and see stuff. Remember it is free and the end result is that you will have learned something that you did not know when you first walked in there.