Big Brother: A change in documentaries.

Big Brother is a reality TV show which places members of the public in a house that has multiple fixed cameras, enabling viewers to see all their actions. It was first aired in 2000 on channel 4In 2011 it was then acquired by channel 5 It also had versions of celebrity Big BrotherThe public where interactively involved in evicting members of the house, this ensured of report between public and members of the house.It received BAFTA awards in both 2001 & 2002 for “most popular factual programme” and again in 2004, in 2006 it then won it for “most popular reality programme” this can show how there became a shift in genres, as a new one was created to better fit the programmes at the time.

How has it inspired a change in genre:This form of reality TV has created a hybrid in documentary genres, where observational footage has been set up by the producers, many of the similar programmes give a warning at the beginning of the programme, for example:

Inspired programmes:

Key features:

•Observational footage•Fixed cameras •Public interaction, with voting of evictions and tasks•Diary room- which is almost like personal interviews•Voice of God•Set-up scenarios/ tasks

•The hybrid comes from the use of having genuine reactions to ‘set-up’ scenes, such as the calling of people to ‘The Diary Room’ or by having set tasks having to be completed. The audience interaction also means that the participants are in a contest for a cash prize, and enables the audience to like/dislike certain characters- something that can keep them tuned in.