Representation and realism

Television connects with the real world and operates within our culture and society. All television programmes in some way reflect the world that we live in. However, there are three key issues about representation and realism that should be considered.

Firstly, the audience needs to trust how broadcasters and programme makers represent society. A news, current affairs or documentary programme must be seen as presenting factual items as objectively as possible. While it is hard to avoid bias, it is seen as essential that broadcasters fulfil their public service broadcasting obligations by being as balanced as possible in their presentation of information. This issue generates considerable discussion and debate in and about the media.

Television is also an entertainment medium. While documentary and news programmes can inform and educate the audience, other programmes such as drama and comedy are created to engage with audiences. If a programme is to be credible, it needs to be realistic, at least up to a point - reflecting the world of its audience. The early drama programmes from the BBC were dominated by middle-class actors playing out middle-class dramas. The advent of ITV is often cited as the moment when regional accents were introduced onto TV screens. Since then programme makers have been sensitive to making programmes which reflect the multi-cultural society that we find in Britain today. However, this in itself comes under scrutiny since while on the one hand representation of diversity is desirable, on the other hand to over-represent a minority group can be misleading.

Finally, the success of programme makers depends on the audience. By and large the audience can make decisions about taste and decency by complaining if programmes appear to be too explicit. In this case, television creates a paradox. On the one hand the audience expects a fairly accurate representation of society today; however, on the other hand, it does not necessarily want television to be totally realistic - hence, for example, there is no swearing in soap operas (and yet, they are the most popular programmes on TV).