Roseanna Singletary
ENC 1102
Reality TV Journal #2
February 2, 2013
People tune in night after night to view reality television shows and find themselves compelled
to watch them. You watch one show and find yourself sucked into watching another episode
until finally you’ve followed the whole season.
I was a faithful viewer of the Atlanta/Basketball housewives shows, watching week after week,
rushing home from work, school, cutting errands and household chores short just to tune in.
When I couldn’t get home in time, I recorded them or watched them on demand. I could not wait
to see what clothes the ladies were wearing, were they were vacationing, their hairstyles and
makeup and most importantly what shoes they had on.
The shows took a turn from glitzy and glamorous to drama filled and violent. Reality was far
from what was being portrayed. What real woman takes the time put on her best dress, shoes,
accessories, makeup, gets her nails and hair done to go to lunch or dinner with the same group of
women week after week to act like gladiators.
African American women are often negatively stereotyped as being aggressive, angry, loud,
bitter, and ghetto. These types of shows are adding to these false perceptions. These shows are
also sending out a negative message to the younger generation who see these women as role
models and think because they see it on TV it must be acceptable. I just feel that instead of
looking at the next big paycheck, a little more thought should be put into the images they portray
and the underlying messages these shows are sending out.