The Advent of Reality Television, Essay Example

Music videos came into prominence during the 1980’s with the establishment of MTV (Cutietta, 1985). However, since then, much has changed regarding the way we view our music on television. While music video stations such as MTV and VH1 still play music videos, these moments are markedly decreased and have been replaced by many different television shows including ones of the reality genre. These stations have found that their ratings have been improved in response to airing these shows and many individuals believe that as a consequence, these stations are deviating from their true purpose. However, these individuals fail to recognize that reality television is in a sense, a reflection of music videos. New artists are featured throughout these television shows and their music is used to add to the drama that is occurring on screen. Even though these “new” music videos do not feature the artists, using music in reality television is a way to inform the public about new music, which is a primary goal of airing music videos as well.

Ultimately, music videos and music used during airings of reality television are similar. In airing both kinds of footage, the music television station is promoting new artists and generating interest in their work. However, reality television does this more discretely than music videos. When watching music videos, the viewer often has the opportunity to recognize the band or artist that created the piece, which allows them to understand the art more thoroughly. Often, when the artist has contributed to the production of the music video, the viewer comes to an understanding of the artist. However, music played during reality television series is not without benefit and raises interest in music, but differently. In this sense, the listener is able to focus entirely on the song, and then provided artist information if he or she hears something enjoyable. If the listener is substantially interested, he or she will look up the artists and be more likely to examine their additional music as a consequence (Papacharissi et al., 2007).

In conclusion, both reality television and music videos are effective ways in informing the public about new and popular music, but they persuade listenership differently. The trend towards nearly exclusive reality television on stations such as MTV has demonstrated that the music industry believes that reality television is more effective in achieving this goal.

References

Cutietta, Robert. (1985). Using Rock Music Videos to Your Advantage. Music Educators Journal, 71(6): 47–49.

Fretts, Bruce. (1995). The British Invasion The Real World returns for fourth season – The MTV hit invades London. Retrieved from http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,297971_3,00.html

Papacharissi, Z. & Mendelson, A. (2007). An exploratory study of reality appeal: Uses and Gratifications of reality TV shows. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 51(2), 355-370.