MTV

Screenshot: Resolved for 2010: Avoiding the reality TV sideshows

TV post by lschmeiser on December 31, 2009 - 7:55pm; tagged Bravo, E!, Keeping Up with the Kardashians, lucrative stereotyping, MTV, Rock of Love, The Bachelor, the decline of western civilization, The Real Housewives of Atlanta, The Real Housewives of New Jersey, The Real Housewives of New York, The Real Housewives of Orange County, VH-1.

It's easy to point fingers at narrative television sometimes and claim the writers are foisting outdated and unfair gender roles onto the audience and therefore, by extension, society. Reality TV pokes a lot of holes in the Big Hollywood theory, because the people who thrive on reality TV are the ones who are crafting -- and benefiting -- from a stock trade in stereotypes.

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Don't Just Stand There, Let's Get to It: Vogue Evolution

TV post by Kelsey Wallace on August 25, 2009 - 11:10am; tagged ABDC, America's Best Dance Crew, gay, MTV, queer, reality TV, transsexual, Vogue Evolution.

If you haven't been watching America's Best Dance Crew this season, it's time to start. For those out of the loop, ABDC (as it is known in the in-crowd) is a dance competition show on MTV that combines crew battles and audience voting to determine, well, America's best dance crew. Sure, the show is a little corny, and the awesome Artistry in Motion crew was eliminated last week despite their body-positive message, but ABDC has a lot to offer the feminist television viewer. The show focuses on teamwork and togetherness as opposed to the abilities of certain individuals, and every week they give the teams a different challenge (the Beyoncé challenge was particularly kickass). The real reason to watch, though, is Vogue Evolution.