In 1998 the world was gifted with the release of the social media statement far ahead of its time, the Truman Show. While reality TV did exist in the late 90's, those of us old enough to remember, can note the distinct lack of survivors, american idols, and Snookies. In the magical time where the Jersey shore was just a polluted location, and being an apprentice was far less glamorous, a social statement was made by the writers and directors of this forward thinking movie. While the movie is far from new, the questions it raised are perhaps even more relevant today than when the movie was released.
While the movie does have a high entertainment value, perhaps more important is the social issues it raised for the next generation of viewers. The film makes a clear statement about the intrusiveness of media in the late nineties. With the passage of time and increase in technology, the level ignorance of privacy seen in the movie seems almost, though not quite, eerily attainable today.
As our western society learns to rely more and more heavily on media, we allow media to more fully intrude on our lives. The fine line between our public selves and our private selves continues to blur as we grip tightly the double edged sword of technology with both hands. We have increased our media usage as a culture exponentially and as such have connected to more and more people, this is not a one way street. As we connect to other people and are invited into their private lives, many of us return the
favor publicizing, both intentionally and accidentally our lives to public viewing and scrutiny.
(Image from: http://marketing.securestate.com/Portals/147369/images/social_media_privacy_issues.jpg)
The Truman show also raises another poignant question: Where is the line between reality and the performance we all give? The person that our friends see probably isn't the person our boss sees, which most likely is different than the person our family sees. Which brings the question, which is the real one? Or are they all real and this is just massive over thinking on my part. Either way, it brings into question whether or not a person is being genuine, or just showing you their pre-fabricated social mask.
Lastly I would like to evaluate one incredibly important and relevant question for this day and age, the ethics of reality TV. There are two sides to every story, and reality TV is no different. The basis of reality television today is compiled of people who willingly sign away their lives for a possible twenty minutes of airtime. Oh, and don't forget that said air time will be hacked up into unrecognizable tidbits that will serve as incriminating evidence on the next dramatic scandal in the show. For television, ratings are everything, so what's a little innocent exploitation of daily life? The key here, is that people sign releases allowing their emotions, words, and picture to be used in such a way as the producers/execs, etc. see fit. So, if the people are willing to be misrepresented is there a problem with reality TV ethics? Maybe, but it sure would be hard to prove.
Overall, the movie turned out to be a relatively accurate predictor of what we would be capable of technology wise within the next few years. Whether this was intentional or not, we will never know. I believe that this movie was a statement about where we could be headed as a culture, and while we aren’t there yet, I wouldn’t discredit the theory.
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