Reality television isn’t a new phenomenon. That’s obvious. Big families aren’t new either. In fact, sometimes they seems like a relic of the past.
What’s interesting though is seeing the two combined. “Jon and Kate Plus Eight” is a popular series on TLC and apparently it was popular enough that they decided to add another to the lineup. The newest series is based on the Duggar family and will be entitled, “17 Kids and Counting“. I haven’t seen any of that series yet, but I have seen Jon and Kate. It’s intriguing. Mostly I think as a parent you watch it and thank God you don’t have to deal with it yourself.
While big families certainly aren’t as popular as they were a couple generations back, they by no means have gone away. In fact, there’s a movement called Quiverfull that is focused on bringing the big family back. Obviously this is kind of a personal thing, but what do you think of family size? Jess and I have gone back and forth on it.
Certainly big families are kind of interesting to observe. While the article above about the new show says these ones are kind of boring, people continue to watch. Why? Maybe it’s not just the family size, but our fascination with any type of reality programming. Why are we so fascinated with series probing the depths of just about anything. Jess and I just got done watching the first season of Ice Road Truckers. While some elements are intriguing- the risk associated with the work, some of the interpersonal conflicts, etc, a lot of it is really pretty normal and almost boring. Guys on trucks, tying down loads, worried about getting from point A to point B. Even the risky elements and facts are repeated so often that my wife and I started to make jokes about it.
So what is it? Why do we continue to be fascinated by reality tv shows about every available topic? Would Jesus like it? I think he’d be intrigued, interested to be able to learn about people close up. It’s a great chance to see different personalities at work, learn about interpersonal relationships, and even learn about different ways of life. For that I like it. At the same time, much like some of the social networking elements, I wonder about how much we want to reveal of ourselves to the world, and whether it sometimes panders to or encourages a certain narcicissm.
Jess once asked me what I’d say if someone wanted to do a reality series detailing my life as a pastor. I said no. I don’t trust the editing and I’m not sure I want to reveal that level of myself to the world. There are some things not meant for those who don’t know me. What do you think? Would you want to star in a reality show? Would it be good for a pastor to take such a risk?
Tags: duggar, ice road truckers, jon and kate plus 8, reality tv
I’ll just start by saying that I love reality TV, or at least a lot of it. While I’m drawn to the family themed shows I struggle with them because I find them to be almost voyeuristic. You’re watching some very personal moments in the life of a family, things I know I wouldn’t be comfortable sharing with the world.
As far as a pastor becoming involved – probably not. There would be some real privacy issues to deal with since so much of a pastor’s work is about dealing with people and their issues.
Our society is becoming less and less conscious of privacy, and I’m not sure that’s a good thing.
As the youngest of 7 kids (all but one of whom live in the DFW area) I am a huge fan of the big family. My parents and 2 of my siblings and their families all live next door to each other. Most of the rest of the family thought that would be too much togetherness but actually they have a blast together. They respect each others privacy and they have a set rule that anytime someone wants they can get up and leave without explaining themselves. It seems to work to the point that other family members have considered moving into the neighborhood. At what point does this become a cult?!?
Life is all about making choices. It is the drama inherant in these choices that glue us to reality TV. The draw is seeing someone make a choice that you would never have made in similar circumstances and then see the results played out. Would the shows be as interesting if they never followed up with the consequences of their choices.
Michelle and I are fans of Deadliest Catch. On that show (about Alaskan king crab fishers) the decisions determine fortune or bust, risk and reward, life or death. The voyerisum is sitting comfortably in my family room watching the show and second guessing someone else’s life or death decision. I get all the joy and satifaction in knowing that I was right without ever having to risk anything.
I think that Jesus was a risk taker. He would be facinated with seeing the choices that people made while knowing the potential outcome of those decisions.
If a Pastor usually follows a morale code then there would not be many surprises in store for a reality audience. It would likely be boring. It is only in the indecision and uncertainty of what a person will do that makes reality TV worth watching. I would stick with your day job.
Both of you mention voyeurism. Is this a healthy level of voyeurism akin to people watching?
What reality shows do push things too far or can you imagine such a scenario?
I remember hearing talk of a hidden camera show in the past where they were going to set up people with some pretty awful stunts- “your mom just died”, “you just lost your job”, etc. Where do you think the line is?