Terrible Reality Television

<p><strong>Reality television </strong>is a <a title= "Genre" href= "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genre">genre</a> of <a class="mw-redirect" title="Television program" href= "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television_program">television programming</a> that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 1990s with shows such as <em><a title= "The Real World (TV series)" href= "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Real_World_(TV_series)">The Real World</a></em>, then achieved prominence in the early 2000s with the success of the series <em><a title="Survivor (franchise)" href= "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Survivor_(franchise)">Survivor</a></em>, <em><a class="mw-redirect" title="Idols (franchise)" href= "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idols_(franchise)">Idols</a></em>, and <em><a title="Big Brother (franchise)" href= "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Brother_(franchise)">Big Brother</a></em>, all of which became global <a title= "Franchising" href= "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franchising">franchises.</a><sup id= "cite_ref-hill05_1-0" class="reference"><a href= "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reality_television#cite_note-hill05-1">[1]</a></sup> Reality television shows tend to be interspersed with "confessionals", short interview segments in which cast members reflect on or provide context for the events being depicted on-screen; this is most commonly seen in American reality television. Competition-based reality shows typically feature the gradual elimination of participants, either by a panel of judges, by the viewership of the show, or by the contestants themselves.</p>