GCSE Media Studies Coursework (F) 2 Reality Television

							GCSE Media Studies: Coursework (F) 2
                                   Reality Television
Task 1 (assessed for AO1 and AO2), no more than 700 words
In this essay you must show you understand and can analyse Reality Television as a genre. You must be able to
use terminology associated with Reality Television and be able to refer to specific examples.

What to write                                                                                        Done?

Introduction: What is reality television?
Reality television is a genre of television programme…
It uses real life and real people to entertain, educate and inform audiences…

Reality game show
(Big Brother, Hell’s Kitchen, The Salon, Fame Academy, X Factor, America’s Next
Top Model, Celebrity Fit Club, The Biggest Loser)
The conventions of this type of programme are…
Over a period of many weeks, daily shows, more than one show, multi channel
shows, presenter anchors show, real people/celebrities, deliberately constructed
sensations, voting by public, winner!

This contrasts with Clip Shows, another type of Reality Television where there is
no time sequence, footage collected from around the world, presenter is voiceover
(e.g. Police, Camera, Action! and World’s Most Dangerous Sports)

Main Part
Compare Celebrity Fit Club with The Biggest Loser. Watch the shows carefully,
what are the scheduling details? Who is the audience? What is the structure and
its conventions; how are males and females and other groups represented? How
do the two shows compare? How do their formats differ? How do they cater for
their target audience? How does the opening sequence ‘hook’ the viewer?
Which is the most effective and why?

Alternatively, you can study one Reality Television show of your choice,
answering the above questions (other than the comparative ones)

Why is Reality Television popular today?
It uses real people, for example…
Audiences like this because…
It shows real situations, for example…
Audiences like this because…
Reality television allows audiences to interact and have power over what they
see, for example…
Audiences like this because…
Reality television is addictive viewing because…

Conclusion: Do you hate reality television or love it?
In my opinion…
GCSE Media Studies: Coursework (F) 2
                         Reality Television

Task 2 (assessed for AO3)

In this task you must show you can use your knowledge of Reality Television
to create a text. You must try to be as creative and original as possible using
the conventions of a genre of Reality Television.
    • You must design a reality television show
    • Your work must include the following elements:


Project work                                                            Done?

Explanation of the reality show

   1. The concept of my reality television show is …
   2. The show will involve …
   3. There will be …

How is it similar to other shows?

It is similar to shows such as ……………………….. because …

How is it different to other shows?

However, to make more people watch the programme I have
included original ideas such as …

Structure and conventions

   1.   My show is aimed at … (state the audience)
   2.   My show opens with …
   3.   Next we see …
   4.   There will always be …

Scheduling (channel and times of broadcast)

My show will be on channel … I have chosen this channel because
…
My show will be broadcast at … this is because …
Set designs

The set of my reality television show will be …
I have chosen this because … (show how the ideas and concept are
represented by the set)
There will be …
This is because …
Also there will be …
I have included this because …

Characters/anchor/contestants

   1. In my show there will be … contestants/anchor
   2. They will be ordinary people/celebrities …
   3. The names of the contestants are …
   (Explain the contestants/anchor and the different personalities
   they have – make sure they are interesting and are likely to
   cause conflict/arguments or even romance!)
   4. I have chosen these people because …

Storyboard the opening sequence of your show

Include all the elements of each shot and the script of any narrative




You must support all your work with images,
designs and drawings