Considering the demand for reality television, and the raging elements it showcases such as comedy, documentary and theatre- the hybridisation is a given. It is also something that viewers have seen a demand in judging from the past decades. According to Hill, 2005, it is eminently difficult to categorise reality TV as a singular genre due to the increasing amount of hybridity it holds.
Reality TV is igh intertextual, making a wide range of references in order to keep the viewers engaged. Wood (2004) highlights how individuals often view the hybridity of television as a corresponding genre. This doesn’t mean that reality TV is not a standing genre of its own but rather an incorporation of many other genres. Furthermore, reality Tv is quite open ended and its hybridity is quite abstract Woods would agree as he states in page 48 ““the increased frequency of hybridized expression such attempts at generic identification are understandable, but they have not proved successful” (Wood, 2004, p. 48).
My stance is that reality Tv should be considered as a genre on it own as it has really evolved into what it is now, due to the different elements and intertextual elements it has incorporated, from the different mediums and genres over the years. The quality of reality Tv is not invalidated due to the hybridization of the genre. In fact, it improves everyday because of the ever growing popularity it brings.
References
Hill, A. (2014). Reality tv. ProQuest Ebook Central https://ebookcentral.proquest.com
Smith, P (lec). (2020). Reality television part 2 [Lecture PowerPoint].
Pop Genres 2020 