Today's television is a distant reflection of what the industry was like in the past. In the past, the big TV shows that were all the talk were always funny or endearing sitcoms. But now in our time what we have been subject to is a series of shows that follow a reality-based premise, whether it is on a game show or just following around a group of people.
Shows like Survivor, which mostly started and made it popular do have a premise and planned out parts but fall under reality TV as they have unscripted people interacting and performing tasks. The basic reality TV shows are the ones that just follow a group of friends or family's life, shows like Jersey Shore or Keeping up with the Kardashians. The reasons these seem to have taken over from the past of sitcoms, which let me remind you are clearly still very popular, is that they are typically more simple and easily relatable because it is just people living their lives. That is something we can all connect to. Also with sitcoms and other shows they're pre-planned and take good writing which you may not always love. Viewers might not know what's going on in them, but with the reality shows and game shows, you can tune in whenever and not feel lost.
I think we all know that connects perfectly to most people's fast paced lifestyles. Today you may not have time to sit down and keep up with a whole series or story line all the time, so it comes easier for you to watch just a part of a sitcom to entertain you in the little bit of free time you have. Also, you never know what to expect, so you're constantly entertained with these whimsical shows.
Considering all of this, these shows might not be the smartest shows out there. The set up shows like Survivor, Big Brother, or Impractical Jokers do have purposes, and they are all still simple to relate to for the viewer. Now some of these, such as the set up or joke shows like Impractical Jokers I personally find enjoyable to an extent. Will these shows ever be compared to shows like M*A*S*H*, Cheers, or even recently Breaking Bad in the awards or critical recognition? Probably not but they will still reel in the viewers. Not everybody likes that or thinks it's good TV,
but it is undeniable that it is a good method to get viewers.