Research Investigation Introduction

How Stereotypical is the representation of class in ‘The Only Way Is Essex’ and ‘Made In Chelsea’?

For my research investigation, I will be analysing the representation of class and how it is stereotyped within TV, in particular I will be investigating two Reality TV programs, ITV’s ‘The Only Way Is Essex’ and Channel 4’s ‘Made In Chelsea’. My aims will be to Firstly, to investigate these two programs to determine how class is represented within television. Secondly, how stereotypes are used to represent class within reality TV. Lastly, how reality TV is created in the two programs to create a form of reality within our society. The theories I will apply to my investigation will be The Postmodernist Theory in particular hyper-reality to outline how reality is created through television and The Socio-Economic Model when defining the different class types within these two programs and The Uses and Gratifications Theory to investigate how reality TV creates a hyper-real universe for it’s audience.