THE BIG BROTHER SHOW, A GAIN OR LOSS? – Obia Epiphanus

✨HISTORY

Big brother is a reality competition or shows that started in the Dutch and was created by John de mul Jr. It made its first broadcast in Veronica Netherland in the year 1999 and subsequently it went international.

The theme ‘big brother’ originated from George Orwell’s novel nineteen ‘eighty-four’ of which its theme is continuous oppressive surveillance. The pioneering show of big brother was known for its locality as the members of the house were not allowed to use luxury. As of August 15th 2021, there have been 504 seasons of big brother show in over 62 franchised countries.

✨ INTERNATIONAL EXPANSION

After the first show and a few others at Nederland, other countries of the world started big brother show in their countries because as at then it was a very rich and an all-round reality show. As of August 2021, the show has spread to 62 countries and all the countries that host the show are known as big brother franchise countries.
The show has some features of which every hosting nation must-have, these include confinement to a house, the use of cameras and microphones to monitor the lives of the housemates, lack of contact with the outside world which also includes, internet and use of the phone. Each day the producer through the big brother voice usually issues directives and commands to the contestants.

The show normally exhibits adult content and it’s being rated by different countries according to the stipulations of their law, towards the viewing of adult content in their locality.

✨BIG BROTHER SHOW IN NIGERIA.
The Nigeria version of big brother is commonly known as big brother Naija but previously it was known as big brother Nigeria. Big brother Naija is a Nigerian reality show television series that is based on the big brother television franchise. Just as in every other big brother house, the housemate of big brother Naija lives in an isolated house for a stipulated period usually 91 days, while competing for a large cash prize and other material prices.

The Naija’s version of big brother first aired on M-Net and DSTV from March 5th to June 4 2006, and so far has produced six seasons.
The housemates of the reality television show are continuously monitored during their stay in the house through live television cameras and audio microphones.

The show normally starts with 20-25 housemates. The housemates will have to put up a show or behaviour that they think will provide them with enough supporters to escape eviction from the votes of the fans every Sunday.

✨ TECHNIQUES COMMONLY USED BY BIG BROTHER.

?EVICTION: The housemates cannot live in the house forever and as such two or more housemates have to leave the house weekly, through a popular process known as eviction. The housemates normally nominate amongst themselves several people who will be up for the eviction, and the viewers will have to vote to save their favourite housemates.

The housemates with a higher number of votes, stay back while the two with the least number of votes leaves the house. It is also in the powers of big brother to either replace the evicted housemates or to leave their spaces open.

?WEEKLY TASKS: The show has also proved itself to be television worthy, through its numerous weekly tasks, where the housemates have to perform different tasks, as directed by the big brother himself or by the show’s host. Many of the weekly tasks are usually educative and skill filled.

?COMPETITIONS: The award money is not the only item which the housemates are vying for, there are also other material and immaterial prizes that contestants tend to win while in the house through competitions. A good number of the competitions are being sponsored by the companies in partnership with big brother reality show. The prizes ranges from a few million naira to cars, holidays, tours, contracts et.c.

?DIARY ROOM (CONFESSION ROOM): Every big brother house has a diary room or section where the housemates normally discuss with big brother. There, they convey their thoughts, feelings, and emotions to him. It is also at the diary room that they nominate their fellow housemates for eviction. All the activities that hold in the diary room are kept secret and known only to the housemate, in particular, big brother, and the viewers but not to other housemates.

✨EFFECTS OF THE SHOW ON A COUNTRY.

?A reality show like big brother must have both positive and negative effects on both the viewers and the hosting country. In third world countries like Nigeria, the show is viewed as being all-around disadvantageous. A brief review of the effects of the show will reveal both the advantage and disadvantages of the show to such nations.

?Taking a walk into the negative effect of the show on a nation and its people, one will see that sexual morality is the most generally believed negative impact of the show to its viewers. This is in no way a false motion as the show itself is rated 18 +. Both parents and spiritual leaders discourage their wards and youths from watching the show but regardless of their warnings and advice, the number of viewers of the show continues to increase yearly. Due to the gateless nature of the modern Media (internet), minors who are not up to 18 do stumble upon materials from the show and tend to go through them.

?Idleness and laziness are also viewed as one of the most alarming disadvantage of the show, especially towards the youths and students in higher institutions of learning, who are free so to say from parental guidance. Many of the students watch the show regularly to the detriment of their academics. Same is applicable to unemployed youths, who instead of going out to look for jobs, prefer to sit down and waste hours of their day watching others live their lives.

?Many are also of the opinion that the big brother show leads to a massive waste of money yearly, as people have to spend even their last money just to vote for their favourite contestant, who so to say do not even know they exist. This practice is most common amongst students and youths, who will go the extra mile even to the extent of borrowing from their fellow students and friends to vote. Moreover, the amount of money realised from only the public votes is a large one and so many people think that the show is a waste of money and resources.

? Agreeing with the popular saying that nothing consists only disadvantages let’s look into the advantages of the show to the host country and her citizens.

?National Unity: By the coming together of many housemates of diverse ethnicities and cultures, the show tends to portray the utmost importance of national unity. Moreover, this show has also led to successful marriages and friendships existing between contestants who are of different tribes and backgrounds.

?Employment Opportunities: The show through the production crew provide employment opportunities to youths of the hosting country. It also funds bloggers and media houses with news stories which in turn help them to boost their businesses and careers.

?Economic Interest: Regardless of its negative effects on the economy of the nation and its citizens, result from the research also has it that the show contributes to the economy of the hosting nation as it attracts foreign cameramen, DJs, music artists, and journalists who come from far and wide to Nigeria, just to cover the show.

?Cultural Show: Through the weekly Thursday task assigned to the housemates by the big brother, the housemates get to showcase their cultures and this, in turn, educate the viewers who constitute mainly youths and students.

?Field for psychologists: The show has turned out to be a field for student psychologists as they tend to practicalize their day-to-day learning in the classroom with the show because it is a reality show.

? Entertainment: Asides from being a reality show, the show also presents entertainment to the viewers and the advantages of entertainment in the life of people cannot be overemphasized.

? Popularisation Of Housemates: Once one becomes a housemate of the big brother show, one automatically becomes a celebrity. The show also rises the societal status of the housemates by making them more popular.

✨ ADVICE TO VIEWERS.

Watch the show for the right reasons and it will help to better your life.