Linebarger 1

RoDreka Linebarger

Instructor: Malcolm Campbell

UWRT 1104

October 26, 2017

Reality TV: Do Reality TV Call for a Reality Check? Commented [1]: Maybe change "Do" to Does.

So, Do Reality Tv call for a reality check? Good question, the world and I are wondering Commented [2]: Same change here as well.

the same question. Have you ever wondered if watching shows like Jersey shore, The Real

World, Kyles Life had an effect on you in real life? Well for my end of the semester project I Commented [3]: Add an "and" after that last comma.

choice this interesting topic to argue my opinion that reality TV do not impact young adults like Commented [4]: Change to "chose"
Commented [5]: Change from "do" to does.
myself, and most definitely in teen girls. If you google the definition of reality TV you would

most likely get websites defining reality TV as ordinary people are continuously filmed,

designed to be more entertaining than informative. There are many opposite opinions out there

where studies were conducted to prove reality TV do have some type of negative effect on

adolescents. I started off by researching all information on the influences reality TV have on Commented [6]: I like where you are going with this,
maybe mention 1 or two of these opinions.
teens.

First, I will be discussing the negative impacts the world see reality TV has on teens. Commented [7]: If you cut this out, it will be a great
introductory sentence to your first case study.
Then I will be going back and forth arguing the negative and positive views of reality TV. To get

started I have many reliable websites from published authors but this one website that may not be

a reliable source caught my eye, according to Penn state University PSYCH 424 class blog, an

article titled, Effects of Reality Television written by a future psychologist graduate from Penn

State discuss the effects of reality television. Is violence in reality television okay and is just Commented [8]: Very factual statement, but kind of a
run on sentence. Break it up in pieces and you'll be
good to go.
entertainment? Psych 424 class blog argues violence actions taken place on TV may be fake but
Commented [9]: All caps, like the other one?
 Linebarger 2

young adolescents take that action very seriously. Of course, these reality tv shows are fun and Commented [10]: Consider removing.

entertaining with lots of drama and fighting. But what are these reality TV shows everyone Commented [11]: Put an "is", after it.

talking about? Shows like The Real World, Teen Mom, Keeping up with the Kardashians, and

Duck Dynasty are only a few examples of the portrayed tv shows. Most of the reality shows are

viewed by young teen girls. Like myself I am 20 years old and a junior in college and I still love

a good episode of the Real World, personally Jersey Shores was one of my favorite tv shows. I

think I still turned out pretty good I did not let a show define me or impact me anyway.

Can reality TV lead to domestic problems? Or Anger issues? We watch and see what

these reality stars are going through and I feel bad for them. On shows like Teen Mom most of Commented [12]: Explain why.

those reality stars has been a victim of domestic violence and its sad because some young teens

are watching it and see how the reality stars react back to it and sometimes its not in a good

way. For example, in Teen Mom reality star Kailyn Lowry was once involved in a physical Commented [13]: No need to add this, to many words.
That'll be perfect.
altercation with her boyfriend at the time (PSYCH 424). Even though the actress admitted her

wrongs and changed for the better, this example proves there still a problem with society and Commented [14]: Maybe change to "wrongdoings."
Commented [15]: Add (is) after "there."
showing the viewers that this kind of behavior is acceptable and just entertaining to watch. Does

this happen in real life? The author discusses they knew a girl from high school who had been in

a similar situation and because she watched Teen Mom and was believed that it was okay and

had basically justified the reality star actions, by saying she was under a bit of stress from taking

care of her child, where she just got to her breaking point. People who are against reality tv Commented [16]: Lengthy sentence. Too many ands
and commas. Break it up a little bit.
watching would totally agree that this is a perfect example of how easy reality TV can

manipulate young teens.

Do reality TV compare to the social cognitive theory? Penn State PYSCH 424 class blog Commented [17]: "Do" to Does.

think so they clarify that social cognitive theory gives an understanding of why actions may be Commented [18]: Explain upon this term.
 Linebarger 3

imitated. The media portray these outrageous actions as being okay and acceptable in the world Commented [19]: Change from "portray" to portrays.

but sometimes the actions are imitated because theyre seen as realistic. Both sides can agree that Commented [20]: Change from "the" to these.

the safety of the viewers is most important issue and how they may react after viewing these Commented [21]: Add (a or the) after "is."

shows for the safety of themselves and others. One of the main points in this article the author Commented [22]: Add (is) after "author."

stating, If the media is showing domestic violence to be acceptable, then many viewers are

going to view domestic violence as acceptable behavior. I take on the impression the author is a

female because she writes, just like many other women, I get interested in reality television

shows as well. She talks about how she too enjoys the drama but does not justify behavior that

should not be acceptable. Making this an okay situation can cause results in a lifetime of harmful

behaviors.

According to ScienceDaily, a new study finds MTVs reality TV programs, 16 and Commented [23]: You don't have to put it in Italics,
because you are already citing it in your works cited
page.
Pregnant and Teen Mom help decrease in U.S teen childbearing rate and teen pregnancies.
Commented [24]: Change from "in" to the.
This is great news; teen birth rate fell a great bit between the years 2008 and 2012. See not only

do reality TV impact teens in a good way but help decrease unwanted teen pregnancies and

educate young teens on the safety and consequences of unprotected sex. Despite the negativity

and concerns of others that shows like 16 and Pregnant and Teen Mom are turning teen moms Commented [25]: Swap "and" with a comma.

into reality stars is now glamorizing teen pregnancy, a new study shows a humongous impact in

a more positive direction. The research finds that MTVs 16 and Pregnant and Teen Mom led to

a 5.7 percent reduction in teen births, which accounts for around one-third of the overall decline

in teen births in the year and a half following the shows introduction in 2009 (Levine, Kearney).

The statistics shows that these programs are wonderful ways to educate the youth and even my

15-year-old sister and I watch these shows and view how hard teen pregnancy looks and how it

would change my life forever, honestly this is one of the best show ideas MTV has had in
 Linebarger 4

awhile. I would definitely recommend this show to all young teen girls. This study was Commented [26]: Separate this into two opinions.

obviously a big deal because it was published by the National Bureau of Economic Research on

January 13,2014. Commented [27]: You don't need to add when it was
published, only in your Works Cited Page.

What made teen birth rate rank decline dramatically over the past 20 years? Researchers

showed that the Great Recession played the biggest role, but coming in second is the introduction

of MTVs teen pregnancy shows, my theory is that these young teens are watching these shows Commented [28]: Change from a comma to a period.
So the sentence is not run on and is broken up.
and are terrified of getting in the same situation at a young age and having to either deal with it

one way or another. Two ways are growing up early and taking on full responsibilities of taking Commented [29]: Wordy (not needed).

care of a baby when you yourself is still a baby or sadly having an abortion or a third option

having the baby and giving it up for adoption. Really to me comparing the girls on the show to Commented [30]: Choose a different writer's move. It'll
make your sentence structure stronger.
myself, that is a really big decision to make and sometimes we made mistakes, but I know as a

viewer of those teen pregnancy shows that those girls went through a lot and either way had to

grow up a lot faster than girls who are abstinence. To determine how much of an impact the Commented [31]: What do you mean? Elaborate a
little more.
shows have on teens, researchers Kearney and Levine conducted an empirical study, analyzing

several measures of exposure, including Nielsen ratings data and metrics from google and the

social media site Twitter. I really enjoyed reading this article because use adolescents can relate Commented [32]: Change from "use" to most.

to the topic and the study since we all love our social media sites and who doesnt love to tweet?

After conducted their research they found that searches and tweets about birth control and Commented [33]: Changed from "conducted" to
conducting.
abortion happened exactly around the time the show is on and in locations where it is more

popular.

According to Professor Levine, Our use of data from Google Trends and Twitter

enable us to provide some gauge of what viewers are thinking about when they

watch the show. We conclude that exposure to 16 and Pregnant and Teen Mom Commented [34]: Swap "and" with a comma.
 Linebarger 5

was high and that it had an influence on teen birth rates using Vital Statistics

Natality microdata. Commented [35]: Don't forget to add your Works

Cited Page!