Is reality TV turning us into sideshow voyeurs?
JoAnna Wogulis/Marriage & Family
Santa Ynez Valley News, Solvang,CA
August 11, 2011
Like many others, I have to confess to watching some of those lame reality shows on TV. I'm not only talking about the ones on primetime networks, but also those found on cable stations. What this so-called educational programming shows us is some of the worst behavioral dysfunctions known to humanity. It is truly a TV sideshow.
Most of you probably haven't experienced a true sideshow, unless you ran across one in a small-town circus or carnival, but I remember them. Many, many years ago, when I was quite young, my parents took me to see the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus at Madison Square Garden in New York City. We went each year and you can just imagine what that kind of extravaganza meant to a young child.
The glitz and glamour and daring-do were all there, but the thing that I could not forget was freak show, as it was known then. You don't hear that word "freak" used very often these days and when it is spoken it is meant to deride or demean someone. Those people who were on exhibit at these sideshows were truly demeaned and humiliated, but for some of them, it was one of the only ways they could earn a living. For a young child, they were both fascinating and frightening.
There was no such thing as "politically correct" in those days, so included in the show were the fat lady, the "midgets," the bearded lady, etc.read more:http://www.syvnews.com/lifestyles/health-med-fit/article_55e3f900-c2e6-11e0-8c3d-001cc4c03286.html
Like many others, I have to confess to watching some of those lame reality shows on TV. I'm not only talking about the ones on primetime networks, but also those found on cable stations. What this so-called educational programming shows us is some of the worst behavioral dysfunctions known to humanity. It is truly a TV sideshow.
Most of you probably haven't experienced a true sideshow, unless you ran across one in a small-town circus or carnival, but I remember them. Many, many years ago, when I was quite young, my parents took me to see the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus at Madison Square Garden in New York City. We went each year and you can just imagine what that kind of extravaganza meant to a young child.
The glitz and glamour and daring-do were all there, but the thing that I could not forget was freak show, as it was known then. You don't hear that word "freak" used very often these days and when it is spoken it is meant to deride or demean someone. Those people who were on exhibit at these sideshows were truly demeaned and humiliated, but for some of them, it was one of the only ways they could earn a living. For a young child, they were both fascinating and frightening.
There was no such thing as "politically correct" in those days, so included in the show were the fat lady, the "midgets," the bearded lady, etc.read more:http://www.syvnews.com/lifestyles/health-med-fit/article_55e3f900-c2e6-11e0-8c3d-001cc4c03286.html
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