Intrusion in the age of KUWTK - I

a.k.a. the stuff Freespirit watches with the blinds drawn
a.k.a. a.k.a. Freespirit's shameful (?) secrets

I definitely consider myself above Keeping Up With The Kardashians (KUWTK for the uninitiated) - watching it or just, you know, keeping up. Also consider myself above most soap operas and reality TV. This intolerance of soap operas started when plot lines defied logic for my 12-year old self. The characters on TV were nothing like people I knew in real life and my imagination, which most adults - teachers, parents and grandparents included - would agree was far advanced for the average 12-year old, could not be prodded into believing otherwise. I was more inclined to believe that toys came alive at night, four cousins, one of whom owned her own island, could solve mysteries together and one could visit other lands at will by climbing giant trees.

My cousins and aunts, unencumbered by this illogical demand for logic in their entertainment, were taken in by soaps and easily made the natural progression to reality TV. They goaded me and my willful imagination into watching too - "reality is in the name! you cannot complain that this too is illogical" But by then I was exhibiting the first signs of the restlessness and impatience that has since come to characterize me and I could not volunteer the same enthusiasm for talent competitions, pick favorites and the like. The one genre/sub-genre that I did find intriguing was KUWTK (KUTWK has reached such status since that calling it genre-defining should not raise eyebrows). No hard-sell necessary, this appeared to be the kind of slice-of-life series that would hold my interest.

Interest piqued, I did what I always do - researched the thing to bits before deciding whether its viewership merited my precious time. I fall squarely in the camp that believes in reviews and ratings before doing anything, including breathing air. So if you were thinking that I could have just watched the show instead of doing copious research, did not happen. Anyway, the research was not copious. One review in, I was convinced that the plot lines would be just as contrived, the characters (though real people) just as unbelievable as other reality TV and I was genuinely worried that my IQ might drop a few points. There was also a sense of intrusion, even an invasion of privacy, attached to this source of entertainment.

Friends, to whom I mentioned this, argued that it can't be intrusive if the people are filming their life specifically for others to watch it. This was usually followed by "you know it's all scripted, right?" I have learned from experience that when faced with that argument, one's response depends on the actual (not self-perceived) proximity between friend and self. One must never assume close proximity and irreverently point out that it takes away from the reality promised in the entertainment, even if it maintains the TV. Even if one were careless enough to make such a remark, one should definitely not follow that up with comments on better scripted TV unless one is absolutely certain of the friendship withstanding such a difference of opinion or one does not mind no further contact with said friend. These friends raised a good counterpoint though, was KUWTK truly intrusive? At the time, I thought so and my limited morals and IQ would not allow such intrusive consumption.

Nothing shameful yet. Tune in for the next installment of this nail-biting series.