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 profit-

driven 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