DeepSummary
The episode begins with a discussion about Nvidia, a company that produces graphics chips useful for artificial intelligence, and the recent volatility in its stock price after it briefly became the world's most valuable company. The hosts speculate on whether this is a sign that AI mania is coming to an end or just a temporary market correction.
The second part of the episode features an interview with Emily Nussbaum, a staff writer at The New Yorker and author of the book 'Cue the Invention of Reality TV'. They discuss the origins and economics of reality television, its construction despite being promoted as 'real', and the moral dilemmas faced by those creating these shows.
Nussbaum explains that reality TV exists primarily because it is cheap to produce compared to scripted shows, allowing networks to avoid paying writers, actors, and unions. However, she argues that this constraint also fueled creativity, leading to innovations like confessional interviews and diverse casts that influenced wider culture.
Key Episodes Takeaways
- The economics of producing reality TV shows, being cheaper than scripted shows by avoiding paying writers, actors and unions, was a major driving force behind their rise.
- Despite being promoted as 'unscripted' and 'real', reality shows involve significant editing and construction behind the scenes to shape narratives.
- The constraints of low-budget reality TV paradoxically spurred creative innovations like confessionals and diverse casts that ended up influencing wider culture.
- Reality shows from the late 1940s to 2000s can be seen as an 'experimental' period where ethical lines were blurred and participants didn't fully grasp what they were getting into.
- There is an inherent contradiction and moral dilemma in reality TV - the more 'real' and ethically questionable moments are often what make for compelling viewing that audiences can't turn away from.
- While cheap to produce, reality TV did not come about solely due to budget reasons but represented a 'provocative' and 'punk' shift in television driven by its creators.
- The author distinguishes the 'experimental' early reality era from later years when the genre's conventions became more established.
- Attempts were made to unionize reality TV workers like scriptwriters, but were unsuccessful due to an industry divide between scripted and unscripted television.
Top Episodes Quotes
- “Reality TV exists because its cheap. Its a way for networks not to pay writers, not to pay actors, and not to work with unions.“ by Emily Nussbaum
- “And this was the experimental period. And most of the people who signed up for it genuinely didn't know what they were getting into.“ by Emily Nussbaum
- “And one thing I'll say, and I say this in the book is that the phonier a show is, the more ethical it is. And that's sort of the sad, unavoidable contradiction of reality programming, because the parts of it that are abusive or exploitative are also sometimes the parts of it that lead to the stories that people can't look away from because they're undeniably real.“ by Emily Nussbaum
- “My book runs from 1947 to 2009. I call that like the spaghetti on the wall period.“ by Emily Nussbaum
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Episode Information
Marketplace Morning Report
Marketplace
6/25/24
When it comes to reality TV, don’t give too much credit to the “reality” part. Yet despite its heavy editing and construction, reality TV has sometimes shaped the wider culture. In this episode, we talk about the economic calculus that led to a genre so many people love to watch, love to hate or both. But first: Nvidia shares enter correction territory.