Recently, Big Brother came back to the TV again. No surprise, Channel 10 launched a series of advertisements targeting youths and young adults audients through distribution channels.

Personally, I’m pretty sick of this show and I really want to criticise this show. May I ask couple questions.
“What benefit will we got at the end of watching this show? Does it really entertain us? “

As a Christian, what do u think about watching this show? What kind of values we will receive and learn at the end ?

Please tell me, I just want to hear different voice. 360 angle thinking~~

Hi Ray and welcome!

Please introduce yourself on this thread (if you want!)

A timely question.

As someone who is addicted to Survivor, The Amazing Race, etc., I may have a biased view.  I do not like BB—never have, and I think I neve will—though.

I don’t know if we can learn very much—especially when such situations are manufactured.  Though I think we see what people will do for celebrity status: and I often wonder if I am to blame for feeding the habit!

Survivor & The Amazing Race (moreso the latter—Survivor is boring me a bit of late) interest me as you get to see human interactions that aren’t as manufactured (so I believe) as you’d get in BB and similar programs.  No doubt, for me, there is something to do with having favourites and not-so-favourites ;-) , but I see me doing something similar with sitcoms and movies—I have those I like and those I don’t.  And it does give me something to talk about with others at work.

A lot of scattered thought.  I think I need to think this through more.  Thanks for raising it Ray, and welcome again!

God bless,
Ian.

{ Edit: Look here for a previous discussion on TV in general; it may provide some further thoughts, though it is a broader topic than what you introduced Ray. }

Reality TV is exploitative and plays mind games on people as thought they were rats in some sort of social experiment - doesn’t matter whether it is Amazing Race, Big Bro or whatever: it’s all abuse of other humans. And therefore it is theologically wrong, in not expressing love of one’s neighbour, but rather seeking to pit brute instinct against brute instinct.

I hate it all with a passion.

Nunc: food for thought—I’d never thought of it like that. Though I’d say in most of these the rats are willing participants.  However, I see your point of view about pitting brute instinct against brute instinct.  I may have to rethink my views on this.

Thanks,
Ian.

Religion meets reality

Ian, who longs for a monastic life at times…

I must say I agree with Nunc Dimittis’ view of reality shows.

Ian your link about Britain’s BBC television is looking for four men who want to swap their hectic lives for quiet contemplation in a monastery. This reminded me of an old 1978 film about this topic called Devils Playground -film

Also I think that reality shows really are a devils playground, or “Vanity Fair”, of ‘Pilgrim Progress’, revisited.

Ken

Ian your link about Britain’s BBC television is looking for four men who want to swap their hectic lives for quiet contemplation in a monastery. This reminded me of an old 1978 film about this topic called Devils Playground -film

You know Ken, I am getting really really tired and fed up with your bigoted anti-catholic attitude.

To my reading, Devil’s Playground is about a seminary, set in the 50s (filmed in the 70s) and deals with sexual repression, misexpression and so forth. Are you therefore intending to imply that all “monasteries” are merely hotbeds of sexual misconduct?

Because I see little other relation between your posting of that link, and Ian’s wistful looking-after the silence, solitude and regulated peace of Orthodox monasticism, other than that you are posting a “warning” about how “evil” such places can be.

[quote author="Nunc Dimittis"]Reality TV is exploitative ... it’s all abuse of other humans. And therefore it is theologically wrong, in not expressing love of one’s neighbour, but rather seeking to pit brute instinct against brute instinct.

I hate it all with a passion.

Hear, hear. I can’t imagine what could be remotely beneficial about these shows for Christians to watch. Some may suggest that at least it gives us an insight into the depravity of the non-Christian mindset, but you could just watch the news (real reality TV) for that.

Timbo

Ian repents of his love of such shows (and the associated Schadenfreude) in sackcloth and ashes...

As a Christian, What do u think about Tv show "Big Brother"

You know Ken, I am getting really really tired and fed up with your bigoted anti-catholic attitude.

I must be doing something right.

Nunc Dimittis wrote:
Reality TV is exploitative ... it’s all abuse of other humans. And therefore it is theologically wrong, in not expressing love of one’s neighbour, but rather seeking to pit brute instinct against brute instinct.

I hate it all with a passion.
-----------------------------------------------

I totally agree. Everything is about $

Anothe point I want to mention is that

Why we don’t want to know more or find our neighbors, friends or enemies in our daily life who live around us rather than characters on the TV show?

Who care about the characters in the show? They are far away from our life. I’m thinking what’s the benefit for me knowing them ?
Yes, they may have influenced on our value sometime but that is not the point to get my interest in.

Ken: was that really necessary?  I’d consider deleting it.

[quote author="Ray Lau"]Why we don’t want to know more or find our neighbors, friends or enemies in our daily life who live around us rather than characters on the TV show?

I know my neighbours extremely well.  I spend more time with them (and my friends) in real life than I do watching TV.  I don’t think you can make the assumption that all people who like reality TV do not ever venture into reality itself.

I may be trying to excuse myself, but I see a world of difference between The Amazing Race (which I love) and stuff like Temptation Island or Big Brother (which I’d never watch). 

[quote author="Ray Lau"]Who care about the characters in the show? They are far away from our life. I’m thinking what’s the benefit for me knowing them ?  Yes, they may have influenced on our value sometime but that is not the point to get my interest in.

Taking this to a logical conclusion, why watch anything?  Cinema?  Dramas?  Perhaps we shouldn’t.  I watch movies to escape for a while; I watch them also for entertainment and information (I love documentaries!) I consider myself reasonably discerning with regards to language, violence, topic matter etc ...  so I see no real harm in watching these.

Should we perhaps forego these as well?  Or is there a big difference my dull mind does not get?

Thanks for the interesting topic,
Ian, who won’t say he’s off to watch Countdown to Eurovision...oops. ;-)

[quote author="Ian Holder"]Ken: was that really necessary?  I’d consider deleting it.

Ditto. 

Nunc, don’t bite.

[quote author="Ian Holder"]I know my neighbours extremely well.  I spend more time with them (and my friends) in real life than I do watching TV.  I don’t think you can make the assumption that all people who like reality TV do not ever venture into reality itself

I may be trying to excuse myself, but I see a world of difference between The Amazing Race (which I love) and stuff like Temptation Island or Big Brother (which I’d never watch). 

Taking this to a logical conclusion, why watch anything?  Cinema?  Dramas?  Perhaps we shouldn’t.  I watch movies to escape for a while; I watch them also for entertainment and information (I love documentaries!) I consider myself reasonably discerning with regards to language, violence, topic matter etc ...  so I see no real harm in watching these.

Should we perhaps forego these as well?  Or is there a big difference my dull mind does not get?.

For me, the reason of watching TV are:
1) To gather information and get my mind connect to the world which I have to know what’s going on in our life.

2) I try to find something on the TV which entertain me to escapse my typical ordinary boring life. Perhaps, I’m seeking something extraordinary to fill the gap and balance back my life.

I do watch TV sometime but I do not consider myself as a big fan. Normally, I watch 7 Sunrise, channel 9 news and cooking show. I love watching X-file and Batman beyond cartoon series but they are finish ages. I’m actually seeking something extraordiary which could enterain me to balance back my life now. But I cannot find any good shows attract my intereset since the reality TV has become a “ norm “ (culture).

And I just realised recently globalised culture (Americanisation) has a significant impact on us and limit our choices and make our culture more narrow.

To be honest, I hate “Big bro” with passion as well and I don’t understand at all why my christian sister love watching it ~

I open this topic because I want to gather information before I analytical criticise this show . And I reckon this “crap show” (Sorry, I have to use this word) destroy our realtionship with god. If we watch it for a long peroid, we will be hypnotised by the worldly stuff and fashion. Our christian value will be completely change to a evil way.

See what happen for “good sex”
I actually planed to watch it last week but it turn up disappointment at the end; Yes “BB” replace it, what the heck~~

P.s May I ask a question, When will Good Sex back on the TV ? and what time