Laura MacCorkle Christian Blog and Commentary

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Reality TV and Real Reality TV: There Is a Difference

Okay, confession time.  I’ve watched my fair share of reality TV over the years.  And I list these shows in no particular order:

  • Survivor
  • The Amazing Race
  • The Hills
  • Laguna Beach
  • The Real World
  • Road Rules
  • America’s Next Top Model
  • Project Runway
  • The Restaurant

And there are still others, but that’s all I can remember at the moment.  Would I watch any of these again?  Perhaps.  But none of them are really real.  In many of these examples, oftentimes scenes are loosely scripted and manipulated by directors and producers (I know these things … I watch Access Hollywood). 

Once you find out that—and once you realize that nothing you’re watching on any of the aforementioned is really edifying or uplifting—you realize that it’s all pretty much a waste of your time.

Which brings me to real reality television.  Shows like Man Vs. Wild, The DuggarsMeerkat Manor … pretty much anything produced by Discovery Communications (Discovery Channel, TLC, Discovery Health, Animal Planet, etc.).

One of my favorite shows from the Discovery family is Jon & Kate Plus 8.  If you’ve ever been curious about the lives of multiples, you should tune in to this fascinating glimpse inside the world of Jon and Kate Gosselin and their eight children:  6-year-old twin daughters and 3-year-old sextuplets. 

I began watching it last year during its first season and was instantly hooked.  Don’t know how the Gosselins do it, but it sure is fun to watch!  Season two premieres tomorrow night, October 2, 2007, on Discovery Health at 10 p.m. ET/PT.  Click here for more info.

And in the meantime, don’t worry.  The results show for Dancing with the Stars is at 9 p.m. ET tomorrow night.  So it’s all good and you won't miss anything.  (My prediction?  Mark Cuban … you’re going home, buddy.)