Definition of Big Brother

Big Brother is the name of a television program, specifically a reality show. It has been broadcast in countries around the world from 2000 to the present. The mechanics of the program are as follows:

1) a group of anonymous participants live together in a house for several months, unaware of what is happening in the exterior and viewers can follow their personal experiences and internal conflicts that occur between they,

2) the members of the program-contest must overcome a series of tests and challenges and, in parallel, the spectators decide with their vote who should leave the house of Big Brother and

3) the winner is the contestant who receives the most support from the audience. The mechanics of the program are incorporating some changes in each edition (for example, the expulsion room of the contestants or the division of the house into different departments was incorporated).

Something more than a tv show

The emergence of GH on televisions around the world is a media phenomenon with some characteristics:

1) Anonymous people are the protagonists and achieve fame regardless of their intellectual or creative qualities.

2) The viewer follows the daily life of some characters and can decide about their future at home,

3) GH is associated with a complex complementary world (specialized magazines, debate about GH, castings, fan clubs, an official contest website and a long list of curious aspects).

There are basically two opposite positions on the GH phenomenon. That of those who defend it as a formula of entertainment original and, on the opposite side, that of those who consider that this program is associated with decadent values.

The origin of GH

In 1949 the British writer George Orwell published the novel 1984. The Author he described the society of the future in which political power was based on control of society, fierce censorship, propaganda and manipulation. This situation of absolute domination over individuals is possible due to the intervention of a superior being who permanently watches over the whole world, Big Brother. The protagonist of the novel is an individual who disagrees with the control techniques implanted in society and in its personal diary expresses his deep rejection of the power of Big Brother.

For some, the idea of ​​Orwell's novel and the reality of the television show have connection points.

1) the manipulative role of the media communication in everyday life and

2) the danger to create a company controlled by the technology.

Photos: iStock - 4x6 / anyaberkut

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