Peak nasty
Has reality TV gone too far?
Standing in the Fijian sunshine beside seven other beauties, she heard the host announce: “The least popular girl on Heartbreak Island is . . . Ella.”
Auckland commerce student Ella Caunter, 20, the youngest on TVNZ’s brutal reality show, was understandably distraught. The 16 contestants, vying for a $100,000 prize, had based their decisions on three photos and a brief bio. The scene left many wondering: has reality TV reached peak nastiness? There were complaints to the state broadcaster and co-host Matilda Rice was left reeling from the flak she copped online. Even the other contestants said they felt sick about the process. And in an open letter to the network, an Auckland woman with two young daughters called for Heartbreak Island to be taken off air, saying it depicted an unrealistic view of love and dating.
But don’t expect drama levels on our screens to be dialled back, say experts.
“I think it makes for fantastic television,” Rice tells the Herald on Sunday.
She says things settled down after viewers “got an idea [of] what the show was about past that first episode”.
“I haven’t had one nasty message since then, really.” Contestants didn’t need prompting. “They really got into the show and . . . they had a positive experience as well.”
Rice is already a reality TV star after appearing on season one of The Bachelor NZ, where she found love with Art Green.
She says Heartbreak Island contestants can find love on the show. “If you . . . go into it for genuine reasons and if you are actually open to meeting someone it’s absolutely possible.”
The battle for ratings has never been higher. Traditional TV channels are now vying for viewers with competitors that include Netflix and Lightbox.
In January it was reported that the latest research showed 1.2 million New Zealanders had access to a Netflix subscription — about 434,000 households.
Lightbox was said to reach 810,000 Kiwis via 300,000 nationwide subscriptions.
“With the amount of reality television on our screens these days, it’s not surprising that the boundaries are pushed when it comes to programme makers seeking high ratings,” says Dr Philippa Smith, senior lecturer in English and new media at AUT’s school of language and culture.
“Television is a highly competitive market and every year we see programmes that up the ante to attract the audience.
“So yes, they may become too harsh and brutal for New Zealand audiences, as we have seen with some of the responses on social media and the mainstream media to Married at First Sight and more recently Heartbreak Island.
“But that’s publicity for the programme — and potentially increases the audience.”
TVNZ has defended the show, which airs three times a week in a 7.30pm time slot, with an “uncut” episode screening at 9.30pm on Fridays, saying it “reflected the realities of dating in a Tinder age”.
Otago University media and communications lecturer Dr Rosemary Overell thinks the appeal of this sort of show is that people can relate the situations to their lives.
“These programmes, no matter how harsh or cruel, are continually popular.
“I would suggest everyday life for many Kiwis is relatively harsh or cruel — people living in cars, huge student loans — so a programme which might offer a view of something more brutal may appeal.
“I guess this relates to whether people are perceived to be treated fairly on these shows.
“So for example on Heartbreak Island, when people are told in front of everyone else that they are the ‘least popular’ — we can all identify with how awful that must feel.”
Overell says reality TV picks related character types and relatively relatable situations: sexual jealousy, issues over the division of labour at work and home, to appeal to the audience. “There is also an encouragement in these programmes to be ‘team whoever’. . . which plays out on Twitter and social media.”
It is not surprising that
“It’s important to remember that reality television programmes are constructed, and hardly reality in the strict sense of the word.”
Philippa Smith
some parents may be upset about the effect shows may have on their children, she says.
“I really worry about how young people might perceive love and relationships based on these shows seeking romance.”
Drama levels on reality shows can be high. Married at First Sight NZ, returning to Three later this year, has pairs of strangers, matched by experts, meet for the first time on their wedding day.
In an episode in the first series, a TV executive intervened at a reunion dinner for contestants when an argument broke out among a number of them about past behaviour and personal grievances.
And some viewers were left cringing during contestant Ben Blackwell’s outbursts at husband Christchurch ambulance driver Aaron Chisholm. Blackwell said he fielded threats of violence daily as the show aired.
Self-described “bichelorette” from season one of The Bachelor, Chrystal Chenery, was also labelled the villain, as was season two’s Nazanin Khanjani.
And last year’s The Block NZ portrayed twins Julia and Ali the same way.
They drank alcohol on-site and escaped punishment, and were caught on camera spying on the other teams and mocking their designs.
A social media backlash ensued and they were sent home for three days, angering fellow contestants.
Smith says some shows overstep the mark at times.
“Even I have sat on the sofa and cringed at times, thinking, ‘Do these participants really know what they are in for when they sign up for these programmes?’
“There is likely to be a threshold for some audiences when the drama level becomes too high and who will switch off, particularly if they identify with a person and put themselves in their shoes.
“But there is also the schadenfreude effect, where some people find enjoyment in watching others in certain predicaments and regard these programmes as entertainment.
“It’s important to remember that reality television programmes are constructed, however, and hardly reality in the strict sense of the word.”
TVNZ’s director of content, Cate Slater, says reality TV formats can be high stakes. “Contestants are highly invested in their show’s outcome — they’re in it to win it. With that comes a lot of very real emotion. “Viewers get to see that tension play out. It’s one of the reasons these sorts of programmes resonate so strongly with audiences.”
She says TVNZ takes the mental and physical health of contestants seriously.
“We’re cognisant of the fact that appearing on TV brings profile and we also understand that social media feedback can be immediate and that trolling can be an issue.
“It’s for that reason we have a range of healthcare professionals involved throughout production and after filming has wrapped.”
Rice says TVNZ offered the Heartbreak Island contestants and co-hosts confidential access to a counsellor or psychologist. MediaWorks chief content officer Andrew Szusterman says reality TV on Three is real.
“Having said that, the nature of TV is that it’s always evolving and within that, some people will always find certain content challenging.
“At Three our goal is to entertain the audience — we genuinely want moments that resonate with Kiwis while always ensuring that we portray our characters fairly.
“When it comes to reality TV, we can’t put words in their mouth — nor do we want to.
“The things they say, they say.”
Although some local reality TV shows have been criticised, in Britain The Great British Bake Off — described by a critic as the nicest show on television — was the most-watched show in 2015 and 2016.
The show was also a strong performer for Prime here.
The channel has screened all eight series, says Sky head of entertainment content Karen
Bieleski.
TVNZ is set to screen The Great Kiwi Bake Off later this year.
Smith says there have long been gentler reality TV series, such as fishing and house transformation. Reality TV is important to Kiwi audiences because they like to see themselves on television, she says.
“That’s partly because that reinforces our sense of national identity, particularly if the programme is set in New Zealand with familiar locations, our culture and personalities/celebrities,” Smith says.
“With New Zealand being a small country too, it’s often we know a contestant, or someone else who knows them — so it makes us feel connected.
“And then, of course, there are both the social media and the mainstream media that get caught up in these programmes so they become part of a national conversation.
“David Seymour’s experience on DWTS is an example of that.”
Despite controversy surrounding reality TV, the Herald on Sunday last year revealed tens of thousands of would-be contestants lined up for a shot at fame in the 2018 Kiwi season.
Smith says some may want to go on the shows to further their careers or gain a greater public profile.
“It’s worked for some but that’s a risk, particularly when the social media comments can be harrowing.”
Contestants definitely need to be thick-skinned.
“These competitive reality TV shows are a game — some will be good at it and others won’t. There are winners and losers.”
Asked if there is too much pressure on contestants to play along during the making of reality TV shows, Smith says: “Contestants sign agreements with production companies when becoming contestants and presumably understand what the show is about.
“But it’s often the ‘surprise’ factors in these shows that elevates the drama for both the contestants and the audience — so you would expect people to have learned by now that they should expect the unexpected.
“It’s all part of the game.”
“I really worry about how young people might perceive love and relationships based on these shows seeking romance.”
Rosemary Overell