James Poniewozik

About the author: James Poniewozik, a media and television columnist for Time magazine, was the media critic and media section editor for the online magazine Salon.com. He has also contributed to such publications as Fortune, Rolling Stone, and the New York Times Book Review.

Viewers are tired of seeing bland sitcoms and family dramas on network television and have turned to reality TV for entertainment. Although there are some valid moral objections to reality TV—for example, there is deception involved in Joe Millionaire — mostly reality TV is quality satire. Indeed, it ridicules some of the most honored American values like team spirit over individual glorification (Survivor) and marrying for love rather than money (Joe Millionaire). Further, while many believe that reality TV is harmful because contestants...