The objective of this article is to investigate the criticism that reality television defies precise definitionbecause it shares generic conventions with genres such as game shows, talent shows, talk shows
and documentaries. We started this investigation by using the historical genre approach to
determine the historical roots of reality television. The historical approach also enabled us to identify
four genre conventions associated with reality television, that is, the focus on ordinary people,
voyeurism, audience participation, and the attempt to simulate real life. These characteristics
furthermore explain the popularity of this genre with the viewing audience. To make provision for one
genre `borrowing' from another, we suggested the use of the hybrid mix (or generic mix) model
which enables researchers to identify the content (e.g. the narrative) of reality programmes as well
as its unique, formalistic characteristics.