Sociology Paper.docx

In the new and the golden age of television, reality tv shows are arguably one of the hottest forms of entertainment. While the idea of watching other people “live” or “be real” in a staged setting might have been unfathomable by our ancestors, there is no doubt that there is a high number of demand since networks maintain the flow of different types of these shows that go on for seasons. There is no question that the highly profitdriven business of Hollywood and alike media outlets is run by capitalist, and more specifically neoliberalist, values - pushing for free trade and turning content into sellable product. In the article “Reality TV, or the secret theater of neoliberalism”, Nick Couldry argues that the aforementioned values are implicitly visible when analyzing reality tv shows. The fact that such entertainment is so commonly pursued makes this article worthy of a more in-depth investigation. In this paper, I will proceed to zero in on author’s main points and evaluate the significance, as well as the truth in them.

In his article, Couldry begins by claiming that neoliberalism is a production-based “system of cruelty”. Proceeding to elaborate on neoliberalism, the author argues that under the guise of “common sense” reasoning, the system socializes the labor force into maximizing business profit. While this might be viewed as a solely marxist claim, the fact that free market is after maximizing profit and can lead to absence of meaning -as a conscious and merely human concept- is true. Yet, it should not be lost on us that “incentives” create motivation and meaning in form of reward, which can work on human beings much like Skinner’s rats! Couldry then argues that in a neoliberalism economy, employers and those higher in the socioeconomic hierarchy use surveillance and “emotion management” to socialize employees into behaving and living in such a way

that ensures profit maximization, even at the cost of their personal and emotional lives. Emotional labor generally happens when employees are required (explicitly via HR rules) or expected (implicitly via etiquette) to alter their emotions and “act” in certain manners in the context of different workplace situations. Despite the author’s negative take on workplace emotion management in neoliberalism systems, I would argue that there are both positive and negative consequences to this practice. I agree that making retail and sales representatives act in a certain - mostly pleasant- manner at all times might bare a heavy cost on humans’ souls in terms of dishonesty and what it takes to alter one’s emotions in such a way. Yet, HR departments pushing sexual harassment policies and setting interaction-based boundaries for co-workers after the 1960s has made some positive changes, especially when it comes to women being more comfortable to reveal their stories and thus being better able to enter male-dominated occupations, moving toward gender equality. Thus, the line is only crossed when emotional labor bares a heavy weight on the psychological wellbeing and personal life of the employees. Couldry then moves on to compare reality tv main principles with the strategies used in neoliberalism to control the labor force: absolute external authority, team conformity, authenticity, being positive, and individualization. He concludes that “there is an interesting, if hidden, relation between the forms of reality TV and the behavioural norms of the neoliberal workplace… it is precisely the absence of reflexive connection between the much-watched surface of Big Brother and the intensely-lived realities of the neoliberal workplace that is most notable” (Couldry, 2008). To “act” is, in a sense, to manage one’s emotions and to divorce true human emotions of the active agent

involved from what is expressed outwardly within the framework of a particular social situation. One can argue that “good acting” is the art of “false emotions”. Although reality tv hints at the absolute truthfulness of the actors who play in it, I believe performance takes place only in an emotionally managed setting, on the part of the actors that is. The author of the article at hand argues that this type of tv shows is the manifestation of the neoliberalism’s treatment of the labor force, where the employees are under constant surveillance and vulnerable to the observant authority. It is important to note that the nature of drama lies in ritual. Looking at the historical evolution of dramatic forms of medium, from painting to reality tv shows, they have exponentially become better at “imitating” reality. One could even argue that this is either one of the goals, or by-products of performance arts. Although Couldry argues that the mutual characteristics of reality tv shows and “neoliberalism at work” are a result of neoliberalism as an economic system, I tend to view this similarity from a symbolic interactionist viewpoint. Emotion management, as an inherent element of “drama”, is part of social interaction. Of course, this does not mean that the reality of this concept in human society means that it cannot be altered to exploit the minorities or people lower in the socioeconomic hierarchy; to claim that things are this way because they are and common sense supports the inevitability of reality (author’s argument). Yet, there is some intrinsic element to the dramatic emotion management in society that has very well realized the neoliberalist economic system. It seems like quite a jump in logic to claim that the social dynamics of neoliberalism and free market are solely a result of a major conspiracy to exploit, control, and take advantage of the people in lower than highest in socioeconomic hierarchy. Although those higher in class system actively try

to reinforce the ways that have led to the current positioning, the realization of the class system does have roots in the more evolutionary concepts of competition and survival.

In conclusion, I do view the author’s points of comparison between reality tv and neoliberalist emotional labor as valid. However, I tend to believe that the explanation can be approached from a more inherent stand. The nature of dramatic art forms and the nature of human interaction since the dawn of man lay in symbolic interaction and emotion management. While the neoliberalist economic system reinforces these dynamics to benefit and maintain the profiting class, it has not been the sole creator of the aforementioned social mannerisms.

Couldry, Nick. 2008. “Reality TV, or The Secret Theater of Neoliberalism” The Review of Education, Pedagogy, and Cultural Studies, 30:3–13