Graphic by Karina Wu ’23
BY JAHNAVI PRADEEP ’23
Reality TV shows provide alluring and indulgent entertainment. From shows like “The Bachelor” to “Keeping up with the Kardashians” and “Love Island,” they project a glamorous world which draws viewers in and sometimes inspires emulation. This harbors danger: lurking behind the glamor of these shows, there are misleading stereotypes which can often influence judgments as well. Reality shows should attempt to break past these barriers and promote diversity and inclusion of all body types.
Reality shows often perpetuate certain ideas about body images. Mark Flynn, assistant professor in the Department of Communication at Coastal Carolina University, explored this promotion of certain body types over others, and the impact that this can have in a study published in Behavioral Scientist. Flynn and colleagues watched MTV shows, observing what type of bodies were being portrayed on screen. In the end, they found that women were “mostly slender with 69 percent having low body fat, and close to half had medium to large bust sizes.” and the male participants were “predominantly lean with 74 percent having low body fat. In addition, men were muscular, with 66 percent having what is called the V-shaped body type.” Barely any of the participants deviated from this norm.
This convention leads to the viewers accepting these body types as the normal and ideal image. This can have serious implications for the viewers, many of whom are impressionable teenagers.
Flynn’s article chronicles how “teens engage in what researchers call observational learning through social comparison,” taking these media personalities as strong examples to follow and learn from.
This is particularly fueled by the notion that these shows are closer to “reality” than other on-screen media. This leads people to assume that they have something in common with these participants placed within the four corners of their television screens. Seeing them in what they believe to be real settings, there is a sense that they are much like the viewers themselves. The shows must keep in mind the diversity of the audience, reflecting this in their selection of participants as well. The show must not be catered for only certain audiences to feel this connection, excluding those who do not fall in this convention.
In Love Island, men and women are expected to conform to a certain perfect mold.
“There is no ‘diversity’ in terms of the bodies being slim and toned...When I started watching the show, I actually googled the requirements for the show — they were going for ‘model-like’ people every time,” Sophia Husbands, a wellness expert, said to Image Magazine.
Similarly, the men are expected to conform to the norms of being buff, well waxed, young, charming, and so on. When TV shows like “Love Island” or “Keeping up with the Kardashians” promote certain ideas, they should be aware of the dangers of promoting stereotypes and instead strive to be more inclusive. Reality TV shows hold a great deal of potential to influence.