TV Wars: Revenge of the Scripts

[Manic Webb]

Right around the turn of the century, television took a turn toward realism. Reality TV was the new trend. Networks were constantly trying to one-up another by premiering tons of new shows featuring real people rather than trained actors. Scripted television was beginning to fade. Producers' shows weren't getting picked up. The Screenwriter's Guild was in upheaval.

Now, only a few years later, it looks like scripted television is making a comeback. Networks are still making reality shows, but they're coming out less fequently. People are even watching reality television less, in favor of scripted TV. Some of the biggest and most acclaimed shows are now [i]Desperate Housewives[/i] and [i]House, MD[/i] (which, by the way, is airing on the same network that aired [i]My Big Fat Obnoxious Fiance[/i]).

It looks like fiction is coming back, and reality TV is diving from a driving force to "just another TV genre."

Opinions? Thoughts?

[Semjaza]

The main thing here, in my opinion, is that reality TV already did fade into the background on literally every other single channel except for FOX. They put all their eggs in one basket and it backfired on them. Recently, people in charge of the network have even admitted to this being a bad decision, so I'm not expecting many more shows in that vein... if any. The worst part is that FOX would hear about other networks' shows and then make a poorer version that they could put out first. I think that's rather detestable.

So, in that sense, I would say TV is balancing itself out a bit. I think there will always be room for reality TV, but it wore out its welcome quickly. Still, I have to wonder when shows like America's Funniest Home Videos and The Swan 2 get better ratings than Arrested Development.