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Love and Hip-Hop, Bad Girls Club, Basketball Wives: How do these shows, as women, help us or hurt us?

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Temple chapter.

Being a woman in today’s society is a full time job, and then some! There are days when I am ready to hang up my title and there are other days where I want to be the CEO of the company. Most people
maytake that as a joke. In fact it is “real life.” Looking on the outside it may seem that we women have it all together, but actually getting to know us you may find that it’s just easier to assume that we are all alike and all go through the same struggles. Plus, the reality shows of today don’t make it easier for womeneither.

The female stars of popular reality shows decide to put themselves in the spotlight, for– dare I say it, a pay check. Therefore they should realize what they are getting themselves into once the cameras start coming around. Then again, for anyone that’s watched Love and Hip-Hop, half the time they act like they don’t care if the cameras are around, but they should also consider how they carry themselves effects other. It boggles my mind that many of these reality TV stars have children and still act the way that they do. What will the future of our country look like if our children begin to live the reality star mindset in reallife, without the cameras?

I doubt the producers of these show even care. It’s just entertainment right?Don’t get me wrong, now. One
of my favorite pass times is to sit back and catch up on my reality TV shows. My favorite show is Love and Hip-Hop Atlanta, followed by Basketball Wives, Bad Girls Club, and Hollywood Exes. Although the titleof Love and Hip-Hop pretty much sums up the entire plot of the show, I still find myself giving up precious study time to find entertainment through another woman’s struggle. It’s intriguing to see people giving up their freedom for a paycheck. There are some instances, such as K. Michelle of LHHA speaking out against domestic violence, that have actually been a positive outcome from reality shows. However, when you have the Stevie J’s of the world using the women that care about them to give their careers a boost, I’m not sure if it’s even worth it. Why sell your soul for a dollar when you can keep your right to independence for free?


The show Love and Hip-Hop itself is a double edged sword. As we all have seen on the show, the stars chosen to debut are torn between the two and must decide which they will pick; love or hip-hop. That mayseem like an easy decision, but as a woman I know this can determine your level of success because you basically have to decide if you want to have a companion or if you want a career. As we saw it play out on the second season of the show, most of the women decided to choose love over hip-hop because at the end of the day it’s more important to have someone to go home to than to have two seconds of fame, which I agree with 100%. On the other hand, the men of the show seem to choose hip-hop over love, which may be the result of the producers’ decisions and not truly what the men chose at all.

It’s crazy that a reality show seems to affect women that aren’t even on the show, but once people are put onto reality TV, others start making judgments about those they perceive to be like reality TV stars. Instead of doing this I wish people would learn to separate the two, honestly. Look at the way that some of the
stars of Love and Hip-Hop Atlanta carry themselves. I would never want to be compared to Joseline or Karlie. Like, whhhaatttt? Just keep me separate from all that reality show hoop-la. At the end of the day I’m me and that’s all that matters.

We women need to see reality TV for what it is, another business. Unless a reality TV show starts off with a positive theme, like “The Plight of College Women at Temple University and their Success after Graduation”, then we just have to take it for what it is.

 

Jaimee Swift is a Senior majoring in Communications. One of her many dreams is to become a broadcast journalist and to meet and work with the infamous Anderson Cooper. Her hobbies include reading everything in sight, running, dancing crazily, laughing uber hard, watching movies, and consuming as much juice as possible. Jaimee is so overjoyed to be a part of such a magnificent site such as Her Campus Temple University. Ever since the days of her youth, she has strives to make a difference and bring positive change to all that she touches. She still holds on to that mindset and hopes to bring positivity and creativity to Her Campus Temple University!