Ya gotta love those reality shows! What would television be today without them? I must admit, I am addicted, but I can’t help myself. Where else can you see ridiculous personalities come together with so much drama? However, lately, I catch myself trying to dissect the production to discover what’s, well, really real. One of the things I find hilarious is that if you watch the shows from season one to the present, you see a big difference in appearance. Women are getting nose jobs, wearing Christian Louboutin shoes, and driving Porsches. Mainly, it’s because by the third or fourth season, they have money from doing the show to afford all these things! But for some odd reason, they never seem to mention that the money they earn from the “reality” is the very thing that affords them opportunity to live these new lavish lives. It’s almost like the reality show is the elephant in the room.My favorite example of this is from the show “Teen Mom.” It’s been reported that they make about $60,000 a season, yet you see them struggling on the show. They live in trailers, work at Wal-Mart, and can’t seem to make ends meet, but somehow can afford that boob job or trip. Makes me wonder… do producers not let them touch that money during filming or are they pretending to struggle for ratings?The same thing goes for The Real Housewives franchise. This season Nene Leakes keeps going on and on about how rich she is. Well, guess what? I bet a lot of that money comes from the show, but she never seems to mention that. If you watch “Jersey Shore,” you’ll notice Pauly D wearing a diamond chain. He definitely couldn’t afford that the first season of the show. It’s just funny how the fact that these people can live the lifestyle that they do is because of the reality show they are on, but they’re not supposed to ever acknowledge the show.I also find myself watching the background of “Jersey Shore” more than the actual show itself. I’m fascinated how production has to film around all the fans stalking them everywhere they go to make it look like they are normal people living in the real world. If you look closely at certain episodes of “Jersey Shore,” you can see security walking with them, fans hovering outside the store they “work” at just to catch a glimpse of their favorite real-life character, or fans screaming at them from the chairlift that goes past their house.If it was a real reality show, wouldn’t producers be showing those aspects of their life? It’s interesting to watch how a person’s reality changes over the years as a show gets more popular. They’re no longer just normal people living their lives. They’re celebrities trying to pretend they’re not. Totally weird. What do you think of the whole “reality show” boom?
