Monday, 3 September 2012

Reality versus reality television: Doomsday Preppers

By Terrance Franklin


Think you're an extreme survivalist? Then you probably haven't seen Discovery Channel's Doomsday Preppers. The show, now a ratings hit, follows the lives of American families preparing for the apocalypse. Whether they're expecting an economic crisis, a third world war, or a pandemic, these survivalists have prepared in a way you've never seen before.

The viewer gets an inside look into how each family is preparing for the 'inevitable' and why they think it's important to be ready for anything. Some families cite examples of actual past incidents such as major earthquakes or the hyperinflation of the Great Depression. But does the show provide an accurate depiction of the prepper subculture or does it simply go to extremes just to make some good television?

The prepper families shown on Doomsday Preppers all have something unique in how they approach survival. They're definitely not what you would call the average survivalist. Some have fully-equipped bunkers for nuclear war, enough food to feed their families for months or weaponry that would certainly overpower the local police force. The show has given audiences memorable quotes like 'you never have enough knives' and countless others. As you watch the show, it's clear that there is a big difference between reality and reality television.

Regretfully, the producers are just giving the popular audience what it really wants: extreme and also over the top scenarios and figures. They may be seeking a reaction in the viewer, whether it be outrage with the amount of firearms some have or simply shock and amusement in the measures taken by many of the men and women on the show. The result is a skewed expression of the survivalist niche and maybe the conclusion that people who prepare for household emergencies are certainly insane. This has to be an unfair depiction, as most survivalists are everyday Americans that experience the outdoors and wish to be prepared for realistic emergencies just like earthquakes or floods. It can bring attention to the niche, yet it's not necessarily positive.

Nevertheless, the show does have a few beneficial things. We would mention that the producers are trying to play the ratings game, but this actually does result in a show that is extremely addictive and fun to look at. Provided you can look beyond the apparent exaggerations and paranoia of some of the protagonists, you may actually find yourself discovering some things about survival that you really did not know before. As an example, one family has an entirely self-sufficient energy process that runs completely on wind power. Taking into account what we now know about the environment along with the side effects we have on it, this is actually food for thought. Another family has a complicated aquaponic green house; certainly, it is a improvement from simply buying non-perishable ingredients in the case of a short-term catastrophe. Most of these tips can be handy with regards to self-sufficiency and green surviving.

Doomsday Preppers is worth checking out, just make sure you're prepared for the exaggerated scenarios and extreme survivalists that the Discovery Channel has chosen for the show!




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