{"product_id":"cue-the-sun-the-invention-of-reality-tv-1","title":"Cue the Sun!: The Invention of Reality TV","description":"\u003cb\u003eThe rollicking saga of reality television, \u003cb\u003ea \"sweeping\" (\u003ci\u003eThe Washington Post\u003c\/i\u003e)\u003c\/b\u003e cultural history of America's most influential, most divisive artistic phenomenon, from the Pulitzer Prize-winning \u003ci\u003eNew Yorker \u003c\/i\u003ewriter--\"a must-read for anyone interested in television or popular culture\" (NPR)\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\"Passionate, exquisitely told . . . With muscular prose and an exacting eye for detail . . . [Nussbaum] knits her talents for sharp analysis and telling reportage well.\"--\u003ci\u003eThe New York Times \u003c\/i\u003e(Editors' Choice)\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eIn development as a docuseries from the studio behind \u003ci\u003eSpencer \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eSpotlight\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003eONE OF \u003ci\u003eTHE CHICAGO TRIBUNE \u003c\/i\u003eAND THE CHICAGO PUBLIC LIBRARY'S TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR \u003cbr\u003eA BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: \u003ci\u003eThe New York Times Book Review, \u003c\/i\u003eNPR, \u003ci\u003eThe New Yorker, Vanity Fair, The Boston Globe\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eFINALIST FOR THE ANDREW CARNEGIE MEDAL FOR EXCELLENCE IN NONFICTION \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWho invented reality television, the world's most dangerous pop-culture genre? And why can't we look away? In this revelatory, deeply reported account of the rise of \"dirty documentary\"--from its contentious roots in radio to the ascent of Donald Trump--Emily Nussbaum unearths the origin story of the genre that ate the world, as told through the lively voices of the people who built it. At once gimlet-eyed and empathetic, \u003ci\u003eCue the Sun!\u003c\/i\u003e explores the morally charged, funny, and sometimes tragic consequences of the hunt for something real inside something fake. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIn sharp, absorbing prose, Nussbaum traces the jagged fuses of experimentation that exploded with \u003ci\u003eSurvivor\u003c\/i\u003e at the turn of the millennium. She introduces the genre's trickster pioneers, from the icy Allen Funt to the shambolic Chuck Barris; \u003ci\u003eCops\u003c\/i\u003e auteur John Langley; cynical \u003ci\u003eBachelor\u003c\/i\u003e ringmaster Mike Fleiss; and Jon Murray and Mary-Ellis Bunim, the visionaries behind \u003ci\u003eThe Real World\u003c\/i\u003e--along with dozens of stars from \u003ci\u003eAn American Family, The Real World, Big Brother, Survivor, \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eThe Bachelor\u003c\/i\u003e. We learn about the tools of the trade--like the Frankenbite, a deceptive editor's best friend--and ugly tales of exploitation. But \u003ci\u003eCue the Sun!\u003c\/i\u003e also celebrates reality's peculiar power: a jolt of emotion that could never have come from a script. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWhat happened to the first reality stars, the Louds--and why won't they speak to the couple who filmed them? Which serial killer won on \u003ci\u003eThe Dating Game\u003c\/i\u003e? Nussbaum explores reality TV as a strike-breaker, the queer roots of Bravo, the dark truth behind \u003ci\u003eThe Apprentice, \u003c\/i\u003e and more\u003ci\u003e. \u003c\/i\u003eA shrewd observer who adores television, Nussbaum is the ideal voice for the first substantive history of the genre that, for better or worse, made America what it is today.","brand":"Emily Nussbaum","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":47286405824748,"sku":"9780525509011","price":19.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0684\/1791\/3068\/files\/9780525509011.jpg?v=1770444392","url":"https:\/\/intl.allstora.com\/products\/cue-the-sun-the-invention-of-reality-tv-1","provider":"Allstora","version":"1.0","type":"link"}