Edge of reality

Reality TV's influence is seismic: twenty-five years ago, the concept didn't exist. Yet today, it is one of the most powerful cultural forces on earth; a multi-billion-dollar machine. Despite that, it is often derided as 'trash'; a cultural McDonalds not worthy of examination. The truth is that reality TV offers a profound insight into who we are as human beings, questioning the very nature of what we deem to be entertaining. Writer, broadcaster and reality TV-obsessive Jacques Peretti goes behind the scenes of a world that has entranced and consumed him for two decades. Meeting with people at every level of the reality TV machine, from those responsible for coming up with ever-more extreme formats, to the contestants and participants at the heart of some of the most iconic moments in television, who felt that their lives were being exploited in the name of entertainment.