Discovery presents ridiculous reality

“Career oriented” programming of no real value

By Trevor Doré, Opinions Editor

he Discovery Channel has a
op good name and is known for

a lot of good work. For years
they have been bringing science,
history, space and technology into
our living rooms. Now, I don’t know
if it is just me, but recently I have
noticed a downhill trend in their
programming. Perhaps financial
reasons are behind the gradual
change or maybe it’s because they
are simply running out of new ideas.
The change I am speaking of is the
trend towards “career oriented”
reality shows. You know the ones
I am talking about. Shows that
chronicle the day-to-day happenings
in and around a certain shop or work
environment.

Reality T.V. is no longer a

new genre. Over the past years
every station has jumped on the
bandwagon. Initially shows like
Survivor and The Amazing Race
were one of a kind. Soon, however,
everyone and anyone had their own
show. I must say that I watched the
first couple of season of some of

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these shows but the reality trend soon
grew stale for me. I am not sure what
it is about human nature that makes
us fascinated with the life and times
of other people. Overall, I am not
particularly a fan of reality T.V. but
I seem to have a beef with this new
“career oriented” genre.

In case you’re not sure about
what I mean by “career oriented,” let

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Orange County Choppers.

When you break it down, all of
these shows have certain things in
common. They all have the grumpy
veteran who has been doing the same
gig for years and knows all. Then
there is the one character whose
sole purpose is to yell and scold the
others. Anything that is not done their

“For me, ‘career oriented’ reality doesn’t come anywhere close to
provoking thought.”

me elaborate. These shows usually
depict real men doing the real
hardcore work— American Loggers,
Deadliest Catch, Ice Road Truckers
to name a few. Some of Discovery’s
sister channels are also known for
these reality shows such as BBQ
Pitmasters and Cake Boss. Like I
said, anyone can have his or her own
television show these days. I mean,
BBQ Pitmaster? Are you kidding
me? When I look back, I figure it all
started with American Chopper—the
show that followed the lives of the

way is done wrong. Then there is the
rookie/greenhorn—call him what you
will—the new guy who is cut slack
because he doesn’t really know what
he is doing. Above all, every one of
these reality shows has an overly
dramatic narrator. According to him,
everything is a matter of life or death.
They try to turn the most mundane
tasks into the most extreme, which
supposedly makes the show cool.
Whenever I see one of these
shows, I question its relevance.
Overall, they kind of irk me and I

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Baro

wonder why they continue to exist.
While some of the past shows have
now gone extinct, (Miami Ink for
example) they continue to introduce
more all of the time. Discovery has
recently introduced Verminators, a
show about the everyday life of your
friendly neighbourhood exterminator.
I don’t know what it is, but there is
obviously and audience for this type
of television.

Discovery Channel has a
history of introducing and inspiring
thought within its viewers. For me,
“career oriented” reality doesn’t
come anywhere close to provoking
thought. It makes me wonder, instead
of watching these shows about
others peoples amazing creations
and amazing jobs wouldn’t it be
more productive for us all if more
people were out there experimenting
and doing things on your own? If
you enjoy this type of broadcasting
maybe you can shed some light on
the situation. Is there something that
Iam missing? ~

 

 

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