“We went from spontaneous and unfiltered broadcasts to a much more scripted experience”

They were leaving school when Loana entered the loft. And it’s a whole generation of viewers who grew up seeing reality TV squatting on the TV program. Twenty years after the arrival of the first broadcasts, readers answered the call for 20 minutes (and thank you for the many answers!) to tell their memories and their relationship to reality TV.

Enzo, 30, remembers Loft Story, and “hatred in front of the studios of M6”, but also of “the blossoming of Jenifer” at the Star Ac : “It was all a revolution in television. It was like following a series: we always wanted more! “. And Sophie continues: “It was worse than a drug, I was addicted to the point of watching reruns late at night.” Aged 35 and therefore a teenager at the time, she remembers “the enthusiasm that it created among young and old. We hit each other. “

“My boyfriend was recording me the shows of the Loft “

And this madness is necessarily accompanied by some nice anecdotes: “For the Loft, I was in London, says for example the young forty-something Marie. My boyfriend in Paris had recorded the shows for me for my return ”. Barbara had “used all my units at the college phone booth to vote for Jean-Pascal,” says the 31-year-old.

But are these old fans watching or skipping reality TV today? Lily, who took part in some castings, continues at 38 years of age to follow certain programs “because I am attached to the candidates and I am always fascinated by their reactions”.

“Watch the Marseillais is my ‘brain disconnect’ moment ”

Imane, 30, saw the debut of this new TV alongside her big brother and big sister. After a break during her college years, she rediscovered her old habits there: “Strangely enough, it was when I started my working life that I got back to it, at first sparingly, and recently I got back to it. background. I watch to relax and be entertained. I often have very intense days at the level of intellectual concentration, so for me, watching the Marseillais is my ‘brain disconnect’ moment ”.

The Marseillais, Charlotte always says keep looking at them, just like The villa of broken hearts : “In my entourage, many watch these programs to relax and have a little laugh. I think we should not demonize them but be clairvoyant, explains the young woman of 24 years. We went from a spontaneous and unfiltered reality TV to a much more scripted TV experience. Suddenly the experience for the viewer is different. Today when i look The people of Marseilles – often in replay – I already know what to expect. I click on the “reality series” category, and I find there the codes of the B series or soap-operas. You have to look at these shows with hindsight, as you would watch a bad show. “

Nostalgia and evolution of viewers

According to our study #MoiJeune 20 minutes – OpinionWay *, a decrease in enthusiasm for these shows has been observed: for two years, 62% of young people who still watch reality TV say they watch rather less than before. And for good reason: 54% think that the state of mind has changed, 52% no longer like these shows …

Tiffany, 32, has changed the style of programming: “Today, I prefer to watch Top chef, Beijing express or Moms and Famous. It’s more entertaining ”. Because if reality TV has evolved in two decades, so have viewers. Also according to our survey, among those who attended the debut of this TV, 51% are nostalgic for these shows (completely or a little). Many of the testimonies collected evoke “more elaborate programs today, jerky editing”, “always the same stories with the same heads”, “the impression that everything is scripted” or “fake” and above all a “loss of spontaneity. Of the current candidates. The authenticity of the first participants has passed, so remains … TV.