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SO YOU've BEEN on a SHOW: the LIFE-CYCLE and LABOR of REALITY TELEVISION CONTESTANTS by ANDREA RUEHLICKE DISSERTATION Submitted

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SO YOU've BEEN on a SHOW: the LIFE-CYCLE and LABOR of REALITY TELEVISION CONTESTANTS by ANDREA RUEHLICKE DISSERTATION Submitted SO YOU'VE BEEN ON A SHOW: THE LIFE-CYCLE AND LABOR OF REALITY TELEVISION CONTESTANTS BY ANDREA RUEHLICKE DISSERTATION Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Communications and Media in the Graduate College of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2019 Urbana, Illinois Doctoral Committee: Professor James Hay, Chair Assistant Professor Amanda Ciafone Professor Isabel Molina-Guzmán Professor Inger Lisbeth Stole P a g e | ii ABSTRACT This dissertation considers what I am calling the “life-cycle” of reality television participation. Individuals audition and participate in filming, processes which turn them into characters. These individuals then return home having become known individuals, if only to a niche audience. They then must navigate their own relationship to the program and determine how best to pursue their career and personal goals. Relationships with friends, family and employers may change due to participation. The impacts of appearing on a reality show last far beyond the filming period. I am considering the labor that contestants put into applying and appearing on the show, and the effects that participation has on their own self-image and future career and life plans. This project contextualizes format television in Canada and considers the linkages between the labor required of reality contestants and that expected in other industries. The expectations placed on reality contestants can be seen as exaggerated versions of the labor expected of all workers in the current economy. Reality television contestants have often been viewed as being exploited by the programs they appear on. This project nuances that understanding by considering how individuals make sense of their own participation. The findings are based on 49 interviews with contestants on Canadian skill and talent based reality competition programs. These interviews occurred over the phone, by video chat, and through written correspondence. The majority of respondents did not win the program they took part in. Yet, the majority of individuals mentioned that they would take part again if given the opportunity. The potential benefits of participation are not limited to winning the title and prize. P a g e | iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I want to thank my advisor, Dr. James Hay, for his support, patience and encouragement over the course of this endeavor. I would also like to thank my other committee members Dr. Amanda Ciafone, Dr. Isabel Molina-Guzmán, and Dr. Inger Stole. Their questions, comments and suggestions were thoughtful and made this a much stronger project. This would not have been possible without the support of my friends and family. They consistently believed in me and this project, even when I didn’t. To Madeline, Leah and Peter who have all patiently listened to me talk about reality television for far too long. To Amy and Gina who encouraged me to pursue graduate school in the first place, and then to finish so I could get back home! To Mike who has been my biggest cheerleader and refused to let me doubt myself. Thank you all for celebrating my successes and commiserating when I was not so successful. Your encouragement and support mean more than I could ever convey. Stephanie and Meghan have been my academic support squad and the best cohort a person could ask for. I met Stephanie my second day in Champaign and it was clear we would either be best friends or bitter enemies. I am forever grateful it was the former. Finally, I want to thank all of the performers, models, home cooks, designers, and chefs who were so generous with their time. They were willing to talk and write about their experiences and for that, I am so grateful. This dissertation only exists because they were willing to let me have a peek into the world of reality television. P a g e | iv TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................................... 1 The Role of the Audience............................................................................................................ 4 Economic Context ....................................................................................................................... 7 The Importance of Genre .......................................................................................................... 11 The Interviews ........................................................................................................................... 17 Reality Television and Labor .................................................................................................... 26 CHAPTER 1: FORMAT TELEVISION AND THE CANADIAN CONTEXT .......................... 32 Format Television as Practice ................................................................................................... 37 Reality Television as (Global) Format ...................................................................................... 40 Canadian Programing: Nationalism and Globalization ............................................................. 44 What Does it Mean to be Canada Famous? .............................................................................. 52 CHAPTER 2: THE FILMING EXPERIENCE ............................................................................ 59 Auditioning................................................................................................................................ 59 Who Is Participation Assumed to be For? ................................................................................. 67 The Mental and Physical Labor of Filming .............................................................................. 72 Image Management ................................................................................................................... 82 The Labor of Being Gone.......................................................................................................... 85 CHAPTER 3: MARKED PARTICIPANTS ................................................................................. 88 Commodification and Self-Branding ........................................................................................ 90 What Does it Mean to be Canadian? ......................................................................................... 95 The Geography of the Nation .................................................................................................... 97 Language - How Does One Sound Canadian? ........................................................................ 100 The Invisibility of Whiteness .................................................................................................. 103 Importance of Age and Experience ......................................................................................... 110 Class and Reality Television ................................................................................................... 113 Bodies ...................................................................................................................................... 117 CHAPTER 4: IMPACTS OF PARTICIPATION....................................................................... 122 Identity .................................................................................................................................... 123 Brand ....................................................................................................................................... 125 The Self ................................................................................................................................... 127 P a g e | v So? ........................................................................................................................................... 129 The Potential Stigma of Participation ..................................................................................... 132 Participation and Self-Branding .............................................................................................. 136 Attempting to Profit from Participation .................................................................................. 137 Participation as Springboard vs Milking it .............................................................................. 144 Mental Health and Participation .............................................................................................. 148 Location, Location, Location .................................................................................................. 150 It’s Not Just About the Contestant .......................................................................................... 154 CHAPTER 5: REALITY TV’S NEW ECONOMY OF STARDOM ........................................ 159 Bridging Amateurism & Celebrity Through Reality TV ........................................................ 161 Precarity and Self-Branding .................................................................................................... 165 The Legacy of Stage and Film Stardom in the Economy of Reality TV ................................ 168 Reality TV’s “Reinvention” of Celebrity and Stardom for a New Mode of Production ........ 175 Celebrity, Courts, and Contracts ............................................................................................. 183 Better Living Through Reality TV? - The Precarious Enterprise of the Reality TV Celebrity ................................................................................................................................................
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