City Research Online

Abstract

The rise of unscripted formats in the reality genre in the late 1990s marks the turning point at which television stepped up the development of its own storytelling techniques and methods. These shows contribute to a distinct discourse by providing a space for the medium to develop its own genres that cannot exist outside itself, separate to those of other creative industries such as literature and cinema. This article demonstrates how factual entertainment producers have moved on from the classic documentary posture of accessing a situation to creating one in order to fully control the narrative arc. Talent competitions go one step further by employing story arcs to create a heroic journey of transformation for ordinary people. These myths reflect the values of late-stage capitalism. In stark contrast to the heroes of world religions, the heroes of reality TV are not obliged to help others, nor act as redeemer or savior. Each is self-serving in seeking a better place in the world rather than aiming to make the world a better place. This article concludes with a reflection on the role of heroic myths in contemporary societies using The Apprentice as a case study.

Publication Type:	Article
Additional Information:	This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Chalaby, J. K. (2025). Heroic myths in popular culture: reality TV, storytelling and politics. Journal of Popular Culture, which will be published in final form at onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/15405931. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Use of Self-Archived Versions. This article may not be enhanced, enriched or otherwise transformed into a derivative work, without express permission from Wiley or by statutory rights under applicable legislation. Copyright notices must not be removed, obscured or modified. The article must be linked to Wiley’s version of record on Wiley Online Library and any embedding, framing or otherwise making available the article or pages thereof by third parties from platforms, services and websites other than Wiley Online Library must be prohibited.
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General) P Language and Literature > PN Literature (General) > PN1990 Broadcasting
Departments:	School of Policy & Global Affairs School of Policy & Global Affairs > Department of Sociology & Criminology
SWORD Depositor:	Symplectic Administrator

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