Chapter 1: Introduction In today’s present moment, the lives of youth everywhere are shaped by a variety of texts and incessant media exposure. The lives that young people lead are underscored by the media that they consume and the ways in which they interact with it. According to Nielson, during the 2007-2008 television season, 77 percent of viewers who were watching the top ten television programs were choosing to watch reality television shows (Nielson, 2011). Additionally, from 2000 to 2010, the number of reality television shows on the air increased from 4 to 320 (Ocasio, 2012). That equates to a mind-blowing 7900 percent increase in a matter of ten years. In spite of these numbers, there are some who still choose to dismiss media and electronic texts as simply harmless entertainment. However, there are others who realize both the direct and indirect impact these texts have on the lives, thinking and even well-being as international citizens of young people. Because the world is saturated in this way, the need for a greater understanding of media, as well as the deeper effects that media may be having on young people, has never been more imperative. Unless educators want to allow the media to continue to “control the ‘bewildered herd’, meaning the U.S. citizenry, in a state of quasi-perpetual stupidification” (Macedo, 2009, XXV), it is important to explore the ways in which youth make meaning out of media and specifically, reality television. Today’s preteens and teenagers interact with media on a daily, if not hourly basis. The choices and types of media that they have at their fingertips are essentially endless, but many choose to watch reality television shows with considerable regularity. According to Nielson Media Research in 2006, during the 2005-2006 television season, 4 out of the top 10 programs popular with viewers under 17 were reality based television shows. Additionally, Ouellette and Murray (2009) found that in 2003, one-seventh of all programming on ABC was based in reality television. While the types of reality shows that youth interact with are widely varied, the fact remains that this form of media is something that occupies a large portion of young people’s time and is, therefore, worthy of an in depth study. Reality television has been studied by scholars such as Laurie Ouellette and Jennifer Pozner; however, much of their work has been focused on the genre itself, rather than on the possible effects that reality television shows may be having on young people. Even when effects on audiences are studied, these effects are often focused on adult viewers, rather than youth. This study aims to change that, by focusing specifically on young viewers of reality television. Preteen and teenage viewers, their interactions with and responses to reality television are important to study when research shows that numbers as high as 67 percent of preteens and 70 of teenagers are watching at least one reality television show on a weekly basis (Harris Interactive YouthQuery, 2006). As Ouellette and Murray note in Reality TV: Remaking Television Culture, it is difficult to argue with the concept that reality television has a longevity and reach that many may have dismissed at first as a passing fad. What some critics may have thought at one time would be something that would come and go out of fashion rather quickly has become a phenomenon that reaches across the globe and covers an incredible number of topics. Reality television is no longer a peculiarity, but rather a “widely recognized, cultural form” (2009, p. 2). With this new cultural form has come debate and discourse over what can and should be considered “real” along with issues surrounding branding, commercialism, stereotyping, violence and many other thought provoking and questionable interactions and portrayals. What is interesting to note, however, regarding this debate and discourse is the tendency that some viewers of reality television have to defend the shows that they are choosing to watch. Randall Rose and Stacy Wood explained this phenomenon when they explained that, “The popular aesthetic empowers consumers of mass culture to defend the pleasure they obtain from it” (2005, p. 286). This need to defend this pervasive cultural artifact can make it difficult to gain a deeper understanding of how viewers perceive and interact with reality television, as well as any lasting effects that these shows may be having on them as a viewer. If one is choosing to defend his or her shows and entertainment of choice, it may become difficult to engage in deeper questioning and critique of the images, behaviors and representations that are being viewed. Ouellette and Murray argue” that The Real World trained a generation of young viewers in the language of reality TV” (p. 5). While this show may have served as a starting point, reality television is a far different animal now than it was when The Real World first debuted. When reality television first became prominent, viewers were watching The Real World on MTV. During this first major venture into reality television programming in 1992, audiences were experiencing something new, something that had rarely - if ever - been done before. While this was provocative in many ways, it may perceived as quite mundane to today’s viewers. Over 20 years ago, this was one of the few choices in terms of watching reality television. Instead, today’s audiences can choose from over 300 of these types of shows. Reality television shows range from cooking shows to home makeover shows to physical and mental competitions to dating shows to portrayals of families and everything in between. Many reality shows involve constant conflict, violence, stereotyped portrayals of race, gender and ethnicity and strong sexual situations. Because of this, these shows aid in perpetuating the society that Henry Giroux describes as being “rooted in a neoliberal market-driven society that numbs many people just as it wipes out the creative faculties of imagination, memory and critical thought” (2011, p. 4). This critical thought that Giroux is vocal about the general public losing touch with is the very faculty that viewers need to employ while watching these shows and interacting with entertainment that is being described as “real life”. With such an incredible number of reality shows to choose from, the depictions of people’s lives that are playing out for the entire world to see, and the potential societal impact that reality television shows hold, it becomes important to work to understand the effects that reality television may be having on viewers, and specifically, young viewers. When one tunes into a reality television program, he or she is making the conscious choice to tune into something that is being advertised as a glimpse into the real life of a person or group of people. These claims to authenticity may be met with differing levels of skepticism, based on the viewer, but the fact remains that the promise exists of “real life” being played out for all to see. To a young viewer, or one untrained in the ways of critical thinking, this promise may be taken at face value. This is troubling, when one thinks of the ways in which certain lives are documented, edited and manipulated, all before their “real lives” make it on the air. As Ouellette and Murray explain So while the promise of the real is what might hook audiences from the outset, the ways in which authenticity is promised by producers and received or questioned by audiences is a complex interplay of a variety of factors . . . p. 6 This concept of authenticity was also studied by Kim Allen and Heather Mendick (2012), when they investigated the complex interactions between social class, young people and authenticity in reality television. The authors found that young people work to negotiate meaning and connections with the participants that they are viewing. Additionally, young people work to make sense of particular class positions while viewing reality television shows and that young people spend their time while watching reality television searching for someone who is being ‘real’. This search for a “real self” being played out on television or a quest to make a connection to what may or may not be a genuine personality speaks to the very real effects that young people are feeling when viewing reality television. Therefore, Allen and Mendick’s work illustrates that there is much to be explored in terms of young people and their interactions with reality television; thus, these factors are worthy of greater study and will be explored here, along with the effects that these shows may by having on their preteen and teenage viewers. In spite of the fact that youth make up a large portion of the viewers of reality television programs, their involvement in this cultural phenomenon has not been explored in great detail. Additionally, youth studies as a whole is an area of study that still struggles to be both recognized and valued. Awad Ibrahim (2014) explains that there is a lack of information, understanding, and even manipulation that exists when it comes to the ways in which scholars both study and understand youth. This misconception is a crucial part of the reason why I feel the need to study teens and preteens and their experiences with media. Ibrahim explains the ways in which critical youth scholars understand youth identity as an incredibly complex notion and he urges his readers to not just view youth as a concept, but to really work to understand the complexities of youth and youth studies. This is what I aim to do when working to understand the effects that reality television may be having on the ways in which young people work to form their identities as well as the ways in which they view others. When considering the research problem, it was important to focus on a specific aspect of youth culture. While youth studies is an area that is both intriguing and, I would argue, underdeveloped, there exists far too broad a scope of study if I were to explore the effects of media usage or even television viewing on young people. Instead, I chose to narrow the research problem to one particular genre of television and one that I knew young people are spending their time with. Additionally, this particular genre of television programming is one that both scholars and critics find questionable and intriguing, so it appeared to me that something that is so pervasive, yet raises so many eyebrows, was worthy of greater exploration. Today’s preteens and teenagers have spent their developmental years immersed in a time when the world has gone digital – everything is at their fingertips and nearly anything can be found by simply staring at a screen. Because one of these screens is sending out messages that some may find questionable, or even toxic, the problem of how reality television may be affecting young people grew and developed. Additionally, when young people have grown up in a culture of rampant neoliberalism and an educational system that often does not value or teach critical thought, respectful debate or even compassion for others, the combination of reality television viewing and shifting societal dynamics becomes that much more intriguing. Societal impacts are particularly worth exploring when discussing reality television, as both Pozner, as well as Allen and Mendick noted that the idea of working class or middle class populations are largely unseen in reality television programming. While Allen and Mendick noted that working class people are often pushed towards middle class values and thus deemed as inauthentic by viewers, Pozner noted that those who are middle class are often portrayed as having more than they do or even living in homes that are not their own, solely for the purposes of appearances and storytelling on the shows. This disappearance of working and middle class populations on reality television shows mirrors the state of society today and does nothing to further the discourse around the societal ills and structural inequities that are working to push so very many people out of a comfortable or even tolerable lifestyle. When preteens and teenagers view hours of this type of programming weekly, their view of the world around them can potentially become quite narrow. Additionally, preteen and teenage viewers may develop a skewed notion of the difficulties that exist for many families that may be just like their own. If a young viewer comes from a struggling family, but never sees his or her type of family situation depicted in “real life” programming, what kind of message is that sending to the viewer? And what kind of effect might that have on the self-worth or self-impression of the impressionable teenager? This type of influence on young people can have devastating effects as they move forward with their own lives, education and work choices if not mediated by some type of critical questioning or dialogue. The question of influence is something that has been discussed in regards to young people for as long as young people have been around. I would argue that every generation worries about the one that comes after them and the people, ideas, messages and texts that may be influencing them. This particular generation faces an entirely new set of digital situations and thus, an entirely new set of potential influences. Thus, by exploring the research problem of how reality television may be affecting youth self-identity and their views on others, an idea that has not yet been explored deeply can come to life and take shape. As stated above, the reach of reality television can no longer be denied. Not only do the types of programs that are now considered to be reality television wildly varied, but the areas of life on which there may be some effect are far reaching. There have been a number of shows over the years that have had commercial or industrial contexts. These shows take viewers inside businesses and performances and work to give context to areas of life that the general public may not be familiar with. In addition to industry, the personal spaces that reality television explores are endless. What often happens in these industry or commercial shows is an introduction to characters that are often shown to be down on their luck, waiting for their next big break or promotion, or even just trying to make ends meet. Through editing and production, the sad tale is often one of personal choice and responsibility that has led this poor character to be hanging all of his or her hopes on this one particular chance. Often there is a gatekeeper of some sort, waiting to decide or dictate how this sad tale will end. The element of power and control is huge in these types of shows, along with the continued perpetuation of neoliberal concepts of individualism, choice and fault, rather than societal ills and structural inequalities. Because of this framing of people, business, industry and competition, these types of shows bring viewers into the private lives of a many different types of people and work to situate gender, race, class, and sexuality in a variety of ways. Shows that explore both personal lives as well as industry work to perpetuate different elements and concepts of culture and power and the dynamics that surround the two. In all of these instances, there is an interactivity between viewers and the program. This level of interactivity is important to understanding reality television’s effects on viewers. While exploring this question of reality television and its effect on young people, it is of the utmost importance to situate media and reality television in our current social, political and economic times. In the era of neoliberalism, when, as Chris Hedges explains, “A nation that destroys its systems of education, degrades its public information, guts its public libraries and turns its airwaves into vehicles for cheap, mindless amusement becomes deaf, dumb and blind,” (Hedges, cited in Lea, 2011, p. 132) young people and their education (both formal and informal), their media and their overall life experiences are all being shaped by the neoliberal policies and practices that now are taking over the public spaces. Because this is the world that students and their families are living in, there is very little thought or critical questioning regarding the different policies and influences that are shaping the lives of young people every day. Because reality television shows sell their products as real life playing out before the cameras, we may see the dire straits that people are living in, but not the entire lifetime that played out beforehand and led up to the point in time that is being televised. We see people and families struggling or made into comic relief on one channel and then can quickly switch over and watch celebrities overindulge and live lives that 99% of the rest of the world will never understand or take part in. These shows illustrate the neoliberal condition, but young viewers do not have the tools or even the forum to negotiate what any of it means, other than the fact that it is something to watch. Sadly, without any discussion around the current state of society, the policies that impact our lives and the lives of the reality characters that are being viewed, young people are left to simply wonder or ignore the messages that are playing out in front of them. The policies and influences surrounding today’s youth are what Shirley Steinberg would describe as “a bewildering new world of contradictory influences, profound crises of the old and tumultuous birth of the new” (2014, xii). When young people are living in ‘profound crises’, educators and scholars need to take it upon themselves to help them examine these policies and influences and give them a space that is “grounded in social justice which recognizes and respects youth” (xiii). Youth studies is a field in which far more voices need to be heard and in which far more people must be willing to make the statement that young people are important and that power holders are doing them a disservice by not helping them make sense of the technological, political, social and cultural world around them. By working to study reality television and the potential implications that these shows hold on the ways in which young people are working to construct their own identities and understand other people, the importance of young people and the difficulties that they are facing due to different policies and influences can come to light. It is important to note here what Douglas Kellner explained in “Toward a Critical Theory of Youth”, namely that today’s young people are growing up in increasingly unstable times. They are surrounded by endless pressure via high stakes testing, incessant social media and networking, the decline of the welfare state and different programs that may have once helped their families to live in a way that at least kept them fed and clothed. Kellner writes that they are the first Cybergeneration, the first group enculturated into media and computer culture from the beginning, playing computer and video games, accessing a wealth of TV channels, plugging into the Internet, and creating communities, social relations, artifacts, and identities in an entirely original cultural space. 2014, p. 9 All of these factors and the ways in which media culture is pervasive have created a culture for today’s youth that has never existed before our current place in history. It would be unwise and potentially harmful to not work to understand this new culture, as well as the issues faced by preteens and teenagers due to the media and reality television shows that they consume and interact with daily. Media, and namely mainstream media, often work to marginalize young people while spreading the dominant discourse and hegemonic ideas and this study will work to understand how all of these issues factor into the lived experiences that young people are having. When one considers the neoliberal policies and practices that now define the world, the idea that all people are valuable for their ability to consume is always at the forefront. With that in mind, there are scholars and advertisers who have looked into the connection between teen and pre-teen audiences and the appeal and influence of reality television. In one study, published in 2011, Patino, Kaltcheva and Smith studied the idea of “connectedness” and looked into specific ways to help advertisers better market their products based on the demographics of viewers of the most popular reality television shows. Troublingly, the researchers were basing their study on the idea that reality television programs influence the buying power of young people, which has been estimated at more than $20 billion per year. Rather than examining the message that reality television may be sending or exploring how this idea of “connectedness” is affecting viewers, these researchers instead focused on the market that is reality television and the potential benefits for advertisers. Their conclusion states, The authors’ research allows advertisers to bolster the effectiveness of product placements and brand integration. By knowing the values of the preteen and teen viewers who are most likely to watch a certain program, advertisers will be able to target products that appeal to those values. Television networks also can employ both the shows and the reality celebrities as forms of branded entertainment. (p. 294) With the writing and publication of this type of research, it becomes clear that the ability of youth to purchase and consume is at the forefront of advertisers and marketers plans. Additionally, this research makes clear that the influence and power of both celebrities, pseudo-celebrities and the shows that they inhabit is one that is real and thriving and must be explored. This focus on buying power, on the individual and the choices that they make regarding the programming they interact with and on the commodification of both people and entertainment, coupled with a lack of criticality and a true sense of media literacy illustrate the hold that neoliberal policies currently have on society. Neoliberal ideals and a constant focus on buying power work well in the realm of reality television, as there is also the ever present notion of brand placement and hyperconsumerism in reality television programming. As Anuska Wolfman found in her research on young consumers, “Children today are growing up in an adult world of consumerism and by the age of three or four are able to have brand preferences” (2005, p. 60). If this is true of three and four year olds, one can only imagine the ways in which branding has taken its toll on children a decade older. In many reality television shows, products are deliberately woven into the staging and setting, such as the Pepsi products present on the judges table on American Idol or the labels that women are wearing on any of the Real Housewives series. There are also other shows such as Extreme Home Makeover that show products being purchased at Sears. Still other shows, such as the wildly popular Duck Dynasty are completely built around product placement, as the show is focused on the family who makes specific duck calls. With all of these products so blatantly displayed and obviously woven into many reality television shows and the number of young viewers who spend hours with these shows, one must question the ways in which this incessant preying on their ability as consumers is affecting the ways in which they view themselves and their own worth. After all, if a teenager loves a specific show focused around young people, but cannot afford to buy any of the designer labels that the characters are seen in, isn’t it possible that this may present some difficulty for the teenager in question? This focus on consumption and buying power is just one of the ideas foundational to the neoliberal policies and practices that touch every part of the lives of young people. In addition to these policies, one must consider two of the biggest socializing agents, schooling and media. Lawrence Grossberg says that we should “not deny that (we) are often duped by culture” (cited in Lea, pg. 146). Everything that young people (and even adults) hear in the media, all of the hegemonic discourse, myths that are passed down and even school curricula act as socializing agents that help them to interpret the world in which they live. This act of interpretation for teenagers comes at an immensely difficult time, when the media is working to Cultivate a fear and suspicion toward all those others – immigrants, refugees, Muslims, youth, minorities of class and color, the unemployed, the disabled, and the elderly — who, in the absence of dense social networks and social supports, fall prey to unprecedented levels of displaced resentment from the media, public scorn for their vulnerability, and increased criminalization because social protections are considered too costly, thus rendering these groups both dangerous and unfit for integration into American society. Giroux, 2011, p.36 When this culture of fear and cruelty is what is being disseminated in the media and when society is so deeply immersed in neoliberal policies and practices, there is developing a very different world for youth to interpret. And while young people are working daily to make sense of who they are and what the world around them means, they may not even realize that the concepts of suspicion and surveillance, both so foundational to neoliberalism, are the nature of the world that they are living in. Young people have spent their entire lives immersed in a digital world, where there are cameras on street corners, in schools, in elevators, possibly even in their own homes. These children have grown up in front of a camera and have rarely known a telephone that could not do anything that they need it to do, including capture and share any private or public moment that they would like to share, much like their favorite reality star. Because of this, the concept of having their own lives constantly documented on film does not seem to be a questionable practice. Nor does viewing all aspects of the lives of others. This private surveillance of the general population is something that reality television has helped normalize. Not only have today’s preteens and teenagers grown up in a world of constant surveillance, but it is something that I would argue often goes unquestioned, mainly because it is normal and even welcomed in the everyday lives of young people. As Ouellette and Murray explain We are also encouraged to participate in self-surveillance. Part of what reality TV teaches us in the early years of the new millennium is that in order to be good citizens we must allow ourselves to be watched as we watch ourselves and those around us, and then modify our conduct and behavior accordingly. p. 9 By growing up in an age where the number of reality television shows has grown exponentially, as has technology, social media and the means with which we have to film both ourselves and others, disrupting the constant surveillance that our lives are steeped in may not seem to be something worth doing. After all, if so many people seem so willing to open their lives to cameras and production crews, what could possibly be wrong with that? Not only does this surveillance go unquestioned, but it is often welcomed by young people. This desire to constantly be under a type of surveillance and the incessant sharing of private thoughts, photos and moments speaks to the appeal of reality television, as well Zygmunt Bauman’s liquid modernity. Bauman describes our world as one in which there has been an effacing of the public and private spaces and where nothing is held to be sacred, private, meaningful or secret anymore. Bauman writes, “The realms of the “private” and the “public” tend to be on war footing, and so do the laws and norms of decency that are binding inside those realms. For each of the two realms, the act of self-definition and self-assertion is performed in opposition to the other realm” (2011, p. 22). This idea then, of self-definition in a world where the public and private are at war, is critical to understanding the relationship that exists between preteens and teenagers and reality television. In Bauman’s liquid modern era, relationships are fragile and fleeting, at best. Instead of working to cultivate long-lasting relationships and maintain a sense of community and connection, people are instead focused on constantly moving on to the “next best thing” and always working to move forward and keep going, so that no relationship ever takes shape, but instead is always liquid and not fully formed. This focus on the new, the next, the latest, has resulted in a world where there is very little meaning-making and critical thought and instead an endless series of distractions. Reality television serves as one of these distractions. If we can focus on the various disasters, competitions, turmoils and comedies that make up other people’s lives, then it makes is much easier to stay distant and removed from our own lives and not be concerned with what may be happening to our private spaces. The idea of private spaces is again, one that is not totally familiar to teens and preteens. One look at social media would prove that. Many people – both young and old -- have no problem documenting every detail of their lives in both images and words for all to see. This blurred line between what is public and what is private is something that has always been a part of the lives of those who are now preteens and teenagers and so it may be a daily occurrence that does not even warrant thought anymore. There seems to be no question as to the need for secrecy, or as Bauman describes it, “privacy, individuality, autonomy, self-definition, and self-assertion” (2011, p. 24). Without this privacy or secrecy, we must question what is happening to our ability to make sense of who we are or who we want to be. Without any semblance of a private life or any tangible division between what is private and what is public, the private lives that are shared publicly on reality television can potentially be having a very real effect on the identities and viewpoints of the young people who are watching them. Because there is no discernible line anymore between public and private spaces, teenagers may very well be viewing reality television as real life and may be looking to model themselves, their lives and even their perspectives of others on the lives that they are watching on television. What is interesting then is this willingness to make private lives so public. Again, one look at the current political, economic and cultural landscape shows a world that is often obsessed with celebrity culture, or as Giroux would describe it, “a debased and debasing celebrity culture” (2011, p.51) This preoccupation with celebrity culture not only illustrates the failing faculty of critical thought, but also the desire to become a celebrity oneself. This is often the basis for interest in reality television shows. In a time when many people are just looking to become famous or trade in their fifteen minutes of fame, reality television shows may seem like the perfect avenue, as there is no talent requirement, no prior experience needed – just the willingness to put one’s entire life on display for the world to see. Bauman makes clear this idea of celebrity and its connection to liquid modernity when he writes, “We seem to experience no joy in having secrets, unless these are the kind of secrets likely to enhance our egos through attracting the attention of researchers and editors of television talk-shows, tabloid first pages, and the covers of glossy magazines” (2011, p. 25). Instead of secrets or intrigue, people instead aim for attention and pseudo-celebrity. This dream of becoming famous or being recognized on the street by perfect strangers is one that is appealing to some young people and that may play a role in the programs that they both watch and interact with. The troubling part, however, involved with seeking instant celebrity on reality television shows is the cost that comes with it. In Bauman’s liquid modernity, because of our constant consumption, because of our endless quest for new or better or different, because there is no difference between creation and destruction, these same ideas have come to apply to people as well. In liquid modernity, not only are things disposable, but people are as well and reality television shows illustrate this concept beautifully. From competition shows that dismiss the winner to dating shows where one lover is always jilted, reality television programming plays out the culture of disposability to far too perfect of a way. Bauman explains, “All these shows are public rehearsals of disposal: the disposability of humans and things” (2007, p. 123). There are no longer lasting bonds between human beings, relationships that are cultivated and grow; instead there are shows where people willingly put their entire lives on display, in hopes of catching that next big paycheck, at the expense of anyone that can be disposed of, should they get in the way. This playing out of disposability for all to see is a very real issue and one that should be explored in terms of how young people perceive and make sense of it. The purpose of this study then is to critically analyze the ways in which youth interact with media and how the images and lifestyles that are portrayed on reality television may be affecting the manner in which youth shape their identities and view others as well. Because adolescence is a time of self-discovery and identity formation, there is much to be discovered in terms of how the viewing of reality television may be playing a role in this process. Shirley Steinberg (2009) makes clear that media affects all of us, for better or worse and my goal with this study is to gain a clearer understanding of those effects on young people and their identities, as well as their perspectives on others. The importance of this study is paramount to understanding the ways in which young people are relating to others and making meaning out of the constant media messages that consume their daily lives. By gaining a greater understanding of the effects that reality television has on young people, scholars can continue to develop tools based in critical media literacy that may act to arm youth with the critical thinking skills that they need, in order to make sense of the message at the site of consumption and analyze how certain television shows may be affecting the views that they hold of both themselves and others. Additionally, by acquiring a clearer understanding of how youth interact with and process reality television, educators can gain the knowledge that might better allow young people to engage with social realities and the knowledge that will serve to both help them deconstruct their own lives, as well as enrich the lives of others. Because reality television shows often present certain races, ethnic groups or socioeconomic groups in a particular light, the power that these shows have in molding the opinions of young people about those who have a different background than their own is unprecedented. By examining these issues in this study, it gives those who interact with children on a daily basis a starting point for the critical discussion that is necessary in dissecting the hegemonic messages and stereotypical views that are presented to young people via reality television. These stereotypes and different views are troubling when one views them through the lens of ‘reality television’. Because these television shows are presented in a way that purports to simply be real life caught on tape, the only things that viewers – both young and old alike -- may know of certain segments of the population come from the stereotyped representations presented on reality television. This study will provide a critical look at the effects that these presentations may be having on young people and the greater implications for what these messages may mean in terms of identity development. As a target audience for many of these shows, youth need to understand these implications. Because teenagers make up a large portion of the audience of these shows, they have the ability to work with media and different texts in ways that work to challenge and analyze the dominant discourse; or they can sit back idly and allow themselves to be entertained, while blindly taking in dominant ideologies and thus, reproducing them over and over. As an educator, I want youth in the future to take a more active role in questioning the dominant discourse. A large part of being able to question the dominant discourse comes from being educated in the subject of critical media literacy and its practices. Unfortunately, critical media literacy is not something that youth are being educated on in traditional schooling. Youth are constantly interacting with texts of all varieties and many are doing so without the critical literacy skills needed in order to make sense of them. Some scholars, such as Giroux, would argue that this lack of critical media literacy skills is deliberate, as a means to keep the general public in a state that leaves them unable to question and critique the messages that are being disseminated by mainstream media. Others would argue that – deliberate or not – critical media literacy skills are an imperative for today’s youth. Douglas Kellner acknowledges that critical media literacy holds the ability to empower young people as they learn to question, critique, resist and argue with the world presented to them. When studying reality television and its effects, the link between this form of programming and the need for critical media literacy becomes that much more apparent. When reality television is accounting for nearly 40% of popular programming and nearly three-fourths of the teenaged population are active viewers, it becomes irresponsible to not look at how to better educate the population on how to analyze and better understand the ways in which media presents gender, race, class and sexuality. Additionally, when concepts of gender, race, class and sexuality are presented in a time where human bonds seem nonexistent and human beings are being treated as disposable, the need for a means to make sense of these presentations becomes that much more important. Because I am completely dedicated to hearing the youth voice and offering a platform on which youth can stand and be heard and recognized, I was adamant that this study be told through the voices of young people who are interacting directly with reality television shows. I wanted young people, specifically those aged 12 to 14-years-old, to be able to express their knowledge and opinions of reality television shows in their own words and in their own way. As Awad Ibrahim wrote, “No one is more of an expert on their lives than young people themselves” (2014, xix). As a means of gleaning some of this expertise and accomplishing the task of getting young voices heard, the methodology for this dissertation is a critical qualitative case study. Because the focus of this study is a contemporary phenomenon (reality television) and because the main research question presented in this study is, “how is reality television affecting how youth self-identify?” this approach, along with Phil Carspecken’s (1996) methods of data analysis and interpretation, will aid in my exploration of social issues and human phenomena. Critical qualitative research allows me to explore aspects of youth identity and their relationship to reality television in a way that quantitative research does not allow. Additionally, because there is an element of power in terms of the relationship between media and those who interact with it in various ways, taking a critical qualitative approach will lend itself well to examining the deeper layers of reality television and the potential effects that it is having on young people. I view this work as that of a critical scholar because, as Phil Carspecken writes, “Criticalists find contemporary society to be unfair, unequal, and both subtly and overtly oppressive for many people. We do not like it, and we want to change it” (1996, p.7). By employing a critical case study methodology, I hope to understand the thought processes of young people and the ways in which they are mediated by different power structures and relationships. The case study model of inquiry is being used as the methodology for this study as a way to work to understand the interactions between youth and reality television. Case studies allow the investigator to focus on a case within its specific context. Or, as Yin (2014) explains, a case study is An empirical inquiry that: (1) investigates a contemporary phenomenon (the ‘case’) in depth and within it real world context, especially when (2) the boundaries between phenomenon and context may not be clearly evident (p. 16) Because reality television has become such a far-reaching phenomenon and because the lives of youth are so delicately intertwined with this type of programming, critical case study provides me the means by which I can collect data in order to observe themes and then work to gain a much more nuanced understanding of the complexity of this relationship. Each individual will be considered as a single case, with the sum of the design being a multiple-case study that will embrace all seven of the participants. While every effort was made to work with a diverse group of students and a large enough number of students, a limitation to this study would be the small number of participants. With a sample size of 7 participants, the result is a limited amount of data with which to work. Additionally, when beginning research for this study, it because clear that the amount of literature available based specifically around youth identity and reality television was relatively small. While there is a great deal of scholarship based on reality television shows and media influence, there is not much specifically focused on how identity may be affected by reality television. The lack of scholarship around this topic speaks to the significance of this research to theory, practice and policy. By gaining a clearer understanding of how reality television may be affecting youth identity formation, as well as their viewpoints on others, educators and scholars can work together to help prepare young people to make better sense of their world; to understand and critique media in a thoughtful way and to develop a more international world view. If more educators, young people and parents are informed in the ways that media works in relation to present economic, social and political contexts, then there is the possibility that consumers of media will make more conscious choices and be more vocal about the types of programming that are aired. DOES REALITY TELEVISION AFFECT YOUTH SELF-IDENTITY AND THEIR VIEW OF OTHERS? 28