Reality TV has established itself as a major television genre. This is TV about real people, and for real people. But how valid is the claim that these programmes tell us the truth about our lives? Is it better simply to point the camera and let people tell their own stories, or does this approach miss something important? Some argue that it is arrogant for programme makers to impose an interpretation. Others insist that they have a responsibility to bring intelligence and insight to their subject matter. This issue is discussed by contributors from both sides of the debate. The Institute of Idea's mission is to expand the boundaries of public debate through organizing conferences, discussions and salons, and publishing written conversations and exchanges in a hope to play a part in shaking up a culture that seems to shy away more and more from confrontation and the clash of ideas.

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The Institute of Ideas's mission is to bring fresh ideas to the public arena on the key debates of our time. The Iol aims to be an agenda-setting organization prepared to think the unthinkable and encourage others to do likewise. The Iol is committed to forging a space where ideas can be contested without constraint, and where the clash of ideas is recognized as integral to the process of knowledge expansion.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent contribution to a much needed debate., 4 Oct 2003

By	A. J. Cox "Andrew Cox" (London, SW8) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

There are some fine essays in this 'Debating Matters' pamphlet from the Institute of Ideas. There are contributions from filmmakers Bernard Clark and Victoria Mappleback and critical input from Chris Dunkley and Graham Barnfield. The theme of this debate is 'what is reality TV?' and 'what is documentary, today?'

Bernard Clark, argues that there is a connection between the 'fly on the wall' documentaries of the 1960s and '70s and the saturation of this genre today, as it has now been reduced to entertainment in the form of programmes like 'Big Brother', 'Survivor', 'Castaway' etc. Clark argues that in his early 'fly on the wall' films, he and his colleagues deluded themselves into thinking they found 'truth' or 'reality' in vox-pop films of ordinary people. Today, it seems that everybody, even celebrities, wants to be seen as 'ordinary', as if that somehow makes them appear a little more 'human'.

Some interesting points are made by all the reviewers. Graham Barnfield sees it as necessary to make a distinction between 'reality TV' and documentary. He argues that all documentaries cannot aspire to absolute truth and require some degree of manipulation in order to be made, but they can reflect some truth about the human condition. Barnfield's argument is broadly sympathetic to John Grierson's famous quote that documentary is 'the creative treatment of actuality'. He also says that 'reality TV' programmes like 'Big Brother' are not documentary, as nothing is really being portrayed and documented, we are simply watching a group of unknowns, sometimes even celebrities, going through the banal motions of everyday life.

Good contributions overall, Victoria Mappleback makes a passionate and articulate defence of some of the new styles of documentary filmmaking, while Chris Dunkley argues that there is nothing new in so called 'reality TV'. This is an excellent volume, which I recommend to anyone who cares not only about the state of television today, but also about the current social and political climate of Britain.

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Reality TV: How Real is Real? (Debating Matters) (Paperback)

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