Reality TV is *hermeneutic labor*, OK?

Reconsidering the gendered aspects of my most enduring guilty pleasure.

Men are going viral for getting pulled into reality TV. Collage: TikTok

Before meeting me, my husband Christopher had never watched reality TV. I’ve since given him a wide-ranging tour of the genre—everything from Alone to Bachelor in Paradise. I’ve explained the conventions when it comes to things like roses and reunion episodes, but also the social eng…