Resurgence of reality TV shows: why do Chileans love them so much?

Since the premiere of “Protagonists of Fame” in 2003reality shows in chile They presented different formats, but always under the same formula. These programs are characterized by bringing together a group of participants to live under the same roof and face various challenges, while being monitored by cameras. Even though the dynamics vary, the basic formula remains valid, which raises the question of why they remain so attractive. .

One of the main reasons is the emotional connection which is established between the spectators and the participants . Chilean men and women find in reality a reflection of their own experiences and emotions, which creates a real connection. Identifying with the candidates’ challenges, dreams and conflicts creates an immersion that goes beyond the screen.

Furthermore, provide a window to human psychology and social dynamics . Observing how participants deal with stressful, cooperative, and competitive situations allows the audience to analyze their behaviors and adopt diverse perspectives. It’s becoming a constant topic of conversation, both online and in everyday life.

This is how the teacher explains it Lorraine Antezana university at the Faculty of Communication and Image of the University of Chile and director of the Nucleus for Research in Television and Society (NitsChile) at Casa de Bello.

– What do you think is the main reason for the continued popularity of reality shows?

Television is super cyclical in the sense that depending on the social climate, the environmental climate, what’s going on in society, there are periods when interest in information will prevail, for example, there are other periods, finally, in which you seek to make catharsis and separated from reality, which is precisely one of those that we experience. There is political disaffection, low interest or general disappointment and other types of places are sought as spaces for catharsis. So there will be privileged fiction or these programs that are hybrid, in which you have real people, but playing a certain role, or in conditions of confinement that are not real.

So what we are experiencing corresponds to this period and this need. It brings back those programs that stop getting interest for a while, but then they can come back because television varies very little, its content is quite stable, which makes repetition the norm rather than innovation . These cycles usually last at least two or three years, then they begin to decline and another sequence occurs. It’s like fashion.

– How have reality shows managed to stay relevant and engaging in a world dominated by technology and online content?

Because precisely what the platforms and all this personalized consumption have achieved is a strong segmentation of audiences. And when you have a very segmented audience, no discourse is shared, that is, you don’t have political, religious or other discourses that are shared by the majority of people. So TV is still pretty much the only medium that offers certain stories aimed at a broad audience, making it almost the only space where you’ll also have cross-generational interest. Because segmentation means we only speak as equals.

And those equals are not just those who think like me, but those who more or less resemble my same characteristics, my same age group. AND television, being a somewhat more massive discourse, at least allows discussions between different people. It is therefore a space that is always interesting not only to analyze, but it is a social need that no other medium meets. .

– Why does everyone seem to be talking about trendy reality TV?

This responds to the fact that there are different forms of consumption. This makes the exposure window for this TV program much wider. . In other words, you don’t have to watch it live anymore, online, you can watch it on YouTube, they can send you a fragment, someone can create a meme, you can join a chat, to a conversation, a note may appear in the media. SO, there’s a whole ecosystem of people and media reproducing these discussions which ultimately makes them issues that constitute public opinion.

– What role do human emotions, such as empathy and identification, play in the enduring attraction that reality TV shows have with viewers today?

Reality TV shows get people to identify with the subjects they deal with in a non-rational way if not emotionally . There is music, there are dialogues, there are people, there are bodies that work, and this allows you to identify with certain situations and therefore to experience them yourself. Of course, above all, this generates very strong primary emotions, which are the ones that, in the end, are the basis of these passionate discussions that are followed online about what is happening and about trying to do something, which in some cases results in doing something. a complaint to the National Television Council, for example.

In addition to negative behaviors, there can be positive things that are also the ones that the same viewers save. In other words, they are spaces where there is a lot of gray, but less white and black, which makes them spaces for a lot of discussions about values ​​and ideologies. And this discussion does not take place elsewhere. It meets a need that they cannot find elsewhere.

– What are these needs that reality TV shows satisfy?

That is to say, meet basic social needs. First, the logic of isolation and the feeling of loneliness that all new media bring are combated. . Because it’s a need to look at the rest, to feel that there are others in this space, and there are others who are doing things that are different and similar to mine. It is therefore a first need for socialization. The second is also the need to calibrate how I see it and how others see it. . And so that’s where those values ​​come in. I mean, would I do it differently or why is he doing it this way, or what should be done about it. And we have few spaces in which this social calibration takes place.

The first fundamental emotion is that of being part of something, of a group, of meeting equals and differences which also allow me to affirm who I am. , an identity construction. On the other hand, we have a very controlling society, where there are few spaces to release negative energies. We do not have carnivals or large popular festivals in which the energy accumulated due to the stress of daily life can be eliminated in one way or another. These discussion spaces, where everything comes out without any filter, which work like a catharsis. There is therefore a social function that we are trying to fulfill.

And the other is the need to be heard . Because of course, if you post a comment you feel that someone is reading you and you feel that someone is going to reply to you. And so you feel that what you say or think produces something, and it is also something that is necessary, to feel that what I think is as important and that others think the same.