Stereotypes In Reality Shows

Reality TV brings out the worst in people. The first reality series ever, The Real World, even includes the lines “...people stop being polite, and start getting real” in its opening title sequence. Producers attempt to create the most entertaining show possible for their own monetary gains, so they edit and manipulate people’s actions to create drama and paint their casts in their worst light. A great number of reality shows “represent” certain demographics, such as young Italian-Americans on Jersey Shore or white, affluent teenagers on Laguna Beach. According to Media Ethics Magazine, one crucial component producers should uphold in reality television ethics is that the stars “be treated in a fair and responsible manner” (Crew). However, a show’s poor representation of an individual representing a demographic, even if it is acceptable to that

Sorority Sisters, a 2014 series about black women in sororities, was an “early success for VH1,” so VH1 believed the show “seem[ed] to be connecting with an audience” (Carter). Shortly after, the show received heavy backlash because it painted its cast’s actions as “violent” and “petty” (Phillip). The Washington Post quotes black fraternity member Reynoir Lewis, who says, “If you’ve never seen a sorority in action and you’ve never seen a fraternity in action and Sorority Sisters is the first time you’re looking into the world of black sororities, it’s just a complete misrepresentation.” Sorority Sisters sparked online petitions for VH1 to cancel the series and for advertisers to pull their ads from the show. Finally, after sponsors such as the NBA and Hallmark pulled their commercials from the series, VH1 canceled Sorority Sisters, which seems like a success for opponents of black reality