Learning from Popular Culture

The “Politics” of Competitive Reality Television Programs

Bibliographic Data

ID6099998
AuthorsDavid R Dreyer
Year2011
Volume44
Issue2
Pages409-413
Publication date2011-04-01
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenuePS Political Science & Politics (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1049-0965 • E-ISSN: 1537-5935
PublisherCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1017/s1049096511000254
OpenAlexW2115043131
LanguageEN
Citations received4
References cited2

Reality television programming has become a pervasive part of popular culture. Although such programming may seem to be mindless entertainment, it can serve as a tool to introduce political lessons in the classroom. This article examines how the concepts of alliance behavior and strategic voting can be explored by using the television program Survivor. An analysis reveals that contestants often behave strategically when forming alliances and voting, in ways that are similar to the strategic behavior of nation-states and individuals residing in democracies, respectively. This article does not suggest that reading political science texts should be replaced with viewing reality television, but rather that instructors can introduce abstract concepts to undergraduate students through popular culture. Such a technique can spark students' interest in politics and demonstrate the broad relevance of political concepts, leaving students with the desire to delve more deeply into the investigation of political phenomena

Advertising · Alliance · Business · Entertainment · Media studies · Political science · Politics · Popular culture · Public relations · Reading (process · Relevance (law · Sociology · SPARK (programming language · Voting · Voting behavior · Computer Science · Innovative Teaching Methodologies in Social Sciences · Media Studies and Communication · Social Media and Politics · Law

Tools

Open DOISci-HubOpen Access