Tracey Alley's Blog - Posts Tagged "knowledge"
Reality TV? Not So Much
If you have cable TV then you cannot help but be aware of the huge number of reality TV shows currently available. These programs range from the sublime to the ridiculous and it seems there are more being made every day.
Personally I love documentaries - always have. My top favourite topics are historical, true crime and wildlife programs. I've probably learned as much from watching these kind of documentaries as I did during my University studies.
But documentaries are not the limit of what cable TV has to offer. Nowadays we have everything from Swamp People, to Deadliest Catch, to Dog: The Bounty Hunter to Pawn Stars etc etc - the list seemingly goes on forever.
The big question though is just how real are these reality programs? The answer to that, all too frequently, is becoming not real at all. It can be difficult to spot a genuine reality program from a staged 'reality' show. Of course that then begs the question - does it really matter?
Well, that's a very tricky question to answer. To some people these fake reality shows come as a virtual slap in the face, an insult to the viewing public's intelligence. To others it probably doesn't matter as long as it's entertaining.
In my household we have two camps regarding reality TV. My husband always gets annoyed if he thinks a reality show is staged. To him it's an insult and basically dishonest. I, on the other hand, don't care quite so much. If the show is interesting I'll watch it - even if I know it's fake.
In one area though I have to totally agree with my husband - by passing these shows off as real the producers are, in a way, treating the audience like fools. And let's be honest - nobody likes to be treated like a fool.
Does that mean I'll stop watching fake 'reality' TV? Probably not and interestingly enough - it doesn't stop my husband from watching them either. All it has really done [at least in our home] is ensure that I get a running commentary while watching one of these fake shows about how staged it is from Robbie.
I guess my question is what is it about reality TV [real or otherwise] that the public at large is so interested in? I know I've certainly never considered myself to be a voyeur but when I'm watching reality TV that's exactly what I'm doing. In many ways it's no different to peeking through someone's window.
At any rate I'll continue to watch and continue to wonder why I find these shows so fascinating. I know that in time this fad, like all others before it, will fade and something else will take its' place. Between now and then however, I'll try to remember my Mother's advice - believe about half of what you see, a quarter of what you read and virtually nothing you are told.
It might be a little cynical but it has the advantage of encouraging me to investigate these topics and hopefully increase my overall understanding about the world.
Cheers,
Trace
Personally I love documentaries - always have. My top favourite topics are historical, true crime and wildlife programs. I've probably learned as much from watching these kind of documentaries as I did during my University studies.
But documentaries are not the limit of what cable TV has to offer. Nowadays we have everything from Swamp People, to Deadliest Catch, to Dog: The Bounty Hunter to Pawn Stars etc etc - the list seemingly goes on forever.
The big question though is just how real are these reality programs? The answer to that, all too frequently, is becoming not real at all. It can be difficult to spot a genuine reality program from a staged 'reality' show. Of course that then begs the question - does it really matter?
Well, that's a very tricky question to answer. To some people these fake reality shows come as a virtual slap in the face, an insult to the viewing public's intelligence. To others it probably doesn't matter as long as it's entertaining.
In my household we have two camps regarding reality TV. My husband always gets annoyed if he thinks a reality show is staged. To him it's an insult and basically dishonest. I, on the other hand, don't care quite so much. If the show is interesting I'll watch it - even if I know it's fake.
In one area though I have to totally agree with my husband - by passing these shows off as real the producers are, in a way, treating the audience like fools. And let's be honest - nobody likes to be treated like a fool.
Does that mean I'll stop watching fake 'reality' TV? Probably not and interestingly enough - it doesn't stop my husband from watching them either. All it has really done [at least in our home] is ensure that I get a running commentary while watching one of these fake shows about how staged it is from Robbie.
I guess my question is what is it about reality TV [real or otherwise] that the public at large is so interested in? I know I've certainly never considered myself to be a voyeur but when I'm watching reality TV that's exactly what I'm doing. In many ways it's no different to peeking through someone's window.
At any rate I'll continue to watch and continue to wonder why I find these shows so fascinating. I know that in time this fad, like all others before it, will fade and something else will take its' place. Between now and then however, I'll try to remember my Mother's advice - believe about half of what you see, a quarter of what you read and virtually nothing you are told.
It might be a little cynical but it has the advantage of encouraging me to investigate these topics and hopefully increase my overall understanding about the world.
Cheers,
Trace
I Will Survive - I know because I did
I will survive - it's a powerful statement. I'm a survivor of bullying so I know a little bit about survival. Bullying has reached epidemic proportions in our schools and workplaces. It's an ugly phenomenon that seems to be continually evolving and steadily becoming worse.
When I first started school I was like any other 5 year old. Wide eyed and uncertain. Within days I became the target of a bully. She was two years older than I and seemed much bigger and stronger. To this day I can still remember how terrifying she seemed to be.
The bullying was all encompassing to me at that age. It started with name calling but very quickly degenerated into physical violence. Teachers, the school Principal - everyone was aware of what was going on but no one seemed to have any answers.
My bullying continued for five very long years until finally my mother took me out of that school and away from my tormentor. To my very great shame when I started my new school something within me had snapped and I became a bully. I was every bit as horrible to my victims as my bully had been to me. It was a sad and lonely experience for me. Not only because I didn't like who I had become but also because just as very few kids want to be seen to be friends with a victim so too does a bully have no real friends because people are afraid of them. Thus almost all of my school years were very lonely ones for one reason or the other.
In time, I'm thankful to be able to say, I stopped bullying other children. It was never really a part of my character and it was a role that never felt comfortable. Looking back I believe it stemmed from a deep-seated need not to be bullied myself any more.
And so I survived - barely. The scars are still there though from my experiences both as a victim and as a perpetrator. In the past I have kept fairly quiet about my childhood experiences with bullying - out of a sense of shame both for what had happened to me and for what I had done in turn. However, given that October is anti-bullying month, I feel it is time to speak out.
Bullying almost always stems from insecurity. Many years after the fact I was able to discover that my own bully had come from an extremely unstable home where she was often victimized herself. Like I did later, she took her feelings of helplessness and powerlessness and turned them into rage against others. It was never about me - it had always been about her. Just as my own victims were not responsible nor deserving in any way of the treatment they suffered at my hands - it came from my own insecurity and helplessness.
If you are a victim of bullying it does help to understand that you have not been targeted because of anything specific to you - simply because someone perceives you as weaker than they. Stand tall and proud of yourself and you too can be a bullying survivor but in the right way.
If you are a bully then please talk to someone you trust about your feelings of powerlessness and insecurity. Address the real reasons behind you're bullying behaviour and you too can begin to not only feel good about yourself but you can also become a survivor.
Because the truth is that both the target and the bully are victims. The world we live in is by no means an easy one for every person to navigate. Many of us are left in situations we simply do not know how to deal with - and this applies to adults just as readily as children. But knowledge is power. Knowing, and understanding, the underlying issues of bullying can help both targets and bullies to get out of this very damaging and scarring situation.
Remember - you will survive!
When I first started school I was like any other 5 year old. Wide eyed and uncertain. Within days I became the target of a bully. She was two years older than I and seemed much bigger and stronger. To this day I can still remember how terrifying she seemed to be.
The bullying was all encompassing to me at that age. It started with name calling but very quickly degenerated into physical violence. Teachers, the school Principal - everyone was aware of what was going on but no one seemed to have any answers.
My bullying continued for five very long years until finally my mother took me out of that school and away from my tormentor. To my very great shame when I started my new school something within me had snapped and I became a bully. I was every bit as horrible to my victims as my bully had been to me. It was a sad and lonely experience for me. Not only because I didn't like who I had become but also because just as very few kids want to be seen to be friends with a victim so too does a bully have no real friends because people are afraid of them. Thus almost all of my school years were very lonely ones for one reason or the other.
In time, I'm thankful to be able to say, I stopped bullying other children. It was never really a part of my character and it was a role that never felt comfortable. Looking back I believe it stemmed from a deep-seated need not to be bullied myself any more.
And so I survived - barely. The scars are still there though from my experiences both as a victim and as a perpetrator. In the past I have kept fairly quiet about my childhood experiences with bullying - out of a sense of shame both for what had happened to me and for what I had done in turn. However, given that October is anti-bullying month, I feel it is time to speak out.
Bullying almost always stems from insecurity. Many years after the fact I was able to discover that my own bully had come from an extremely unstable home where she was often victimized herself. Like I did later, she took her feelings of helplessness and powerlessness and turned them into rage against others. It was never about me - it had always been about her. Just as my own victims were not responsible nor deserving in any way of the treatment they suffered at my hands - it came from my own insecurity and helplessness.
If you are a victim of bullying it does help to understand that you have not been targeted because of anything specific to you - simply because someone perceives you as weaker than they. Stand tall and proud of yourself and you too can be a bullying survivor but in the right way.
If you are a bully then please talk to someone you trust about your feelings of powerlessness and insecurity. Address the real reasons behind you're bullying behaviour and you too can begin to not only feel good about yourself but you can also become a survivor.
Because the truth is that both the target and the bully are victims. The world we live in is by no means an easy one for every person to navigate. Many of us are left in situations we simply do not know how to deal with - and this applies to adults just as readily as children. But knowledge is power. Knowing, and understanding, the underlying issues of bullying can help both targets and bullies to get out of this very damaging and scarring situation.
Remember - you will survive!
