All content on this site is copyrighted by the individual authors and may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, without permission.
Deserving the Prize
by Leigh Devereaux
-- 07/10/2002
Winning at reality television is no longer a matter of physical prowess or social skills. Competitors are now judged by their financial status as well. Why are reality game shows being decided by who deserves the prize?
After Carl, the Florida dentist, was voted out by his tribe on Survivor: Africa last week, I realized there is yet another intricate component of reality television game shows -- each opponents' financial status. Winners of Jeopardy or The Weakest Link are not chosen based on income and assets. They are not asked to reveal what car they drive or how many children they must put through college as justification to walk away with the big prize. Skill and intellect are the true qualifiers. Why then are we seeing a trend to justify one's right to win in reality shows based on financial need?
In Survivor 2, we watched father-figure Rodger fall on his sword for the lovely Elisabeth, whom he adopted as his Outback daughter. In a private conversation with Tina, he asked that he be voted out next when it was clear Kucha tribe members were being eliminated in turn by the more powerful Ogakor tribe. His explanation was clear. He felt he was in a good financial position and needed the money less than Elisabeth, who at the time was dealing with her mother's illness. For three more days in the wild, Elizabeth would earn a bigger purse and Rodger felt she should have it.
This was the one noble instance where a competitor's financial situation was deemed relevant in the outcome of the game. There have been others less virtuous. Consider the first significant prize in Big Brother 2. All the contestants piled in the vehicle only to pour out moments later when it became clear they would be nominated for expulsion if they won the car. Three individuals, however, stayed to compete -- Sheryl, Autumn, and Kent. Rather than finding a comfortable spot for the ensuing endurance challenge, a debate began about who needed the car most. This clearly surprised Sheryl and it was not long before she too gave up the prize rather than listen to a whiny dispute between the other two contestants.
In the end, Autumn stormed away from the car, furious that Kent would not concede the prize to an unwed, unemployed mother who needed transportation. I was pleased Kent did not yield based on Autumn's pleas, but was sorry to see him enter into the debate attempting to justify his own family's need for the car. Though utilizing whatever tactics work is the rule of reality television, we as an audience prefer to see challenging competition over sniveling debate for prizes. In the end, the final Big Brother 2 prize went to the least needy person in the house, Will the doctor. This only demonstrates how disliked Nicole was by the other houseguests and how poor the others strategized their eliminations.
Carl faced the wrath of the Samburu tribe's Brat Pack for his financial status. Despite the obvious disdain the younger members hold for the demanding Sergeant Frank, it clearly was a greater sin in their eyes to seek prize money when one already owns a Mercedes and a Porsche. It did not occur to these young, unemployed individuals pursuing the challenging career path of bartending that people might participate for the sake of adventure, not for the money or a future Hollywood career. True, Carl would have been wise to maintain a more humble demeanor when faced with prying questions from his tribe members, but ego won out. He had to brag about his material success and thereby earned his way out.
Why is financial status so vital when deciding who to eliminate? Clearly removing a strong male from your tribe early in the game when immunity and reward challenges are pivotal to long term success is illogical. Carl's presence increased, not lessened, their chances to win bigger prize money. However, as humans we are motivated to bring our actions in line with our professed beliefs. In our eagerness to appear consistent, we often act in ways that are illogical and even detrimental to our success. The young Samburu tribe members were, like most young people, envious of Carl's material success and believe it is their turn to enjoy the good things of life, hard work and perseverance aside. Therefore, in an effort to be consistent with their belief that they deserve to win since it is “their turn” for wealth and fame, they voted Carl out.
Although we viewers would ideally like to see winners whose lives are radically bettered by their newfound wealth, we do not wish to see a less affluent individual take the prize undeservedly. We want to see the best competition among players, each giving the best of their physical, mental, and social skills to earn -- not complain -- their way to victory.
Leigh Devereaux is a doctoral student in psychology who enjoys watching reality shows as part of her study of social interaction. She owns a home based marketing communications business and lives in San Diego.
Be sure to sign up for our e-mail update so you can stay informed about new articles on the site and be registered for giveaways and special offers! You can find all of our articles about this show at the Survivor: Africa Page, and take a look at our sections on The Amazing Race and Mole 2. You can even buy reality show stuff at our Reality TV Store!
. And also check out 
