• Journal of Popular Narrative
• /
• v.25 no.2
• /
• pp.217-245
• /
• 2019

Recently, the interest among Korean broadcasters in the 'observation entertainment' genre has intensified. This study aims to analyze the genre and storytelling of observation entertainment programming from a narratological perspective. The origin of the Korean observation entertainment program began with the 'reality-variety show'. There was a 'real-life' debate in these reality-variety shows, and as an alternative, the observation entertainment program appeared. Documentary filming, omnibus composition, and spatialization of 'everyday' life have led to the recognition of observation entertainment as a single genre. In particular, 'observers' have become a key factor in the observation entertainment program. The subject of the program is determined by who the observer is. The variability of the program format is the same. The observer looks at the observation target on behalf of the viewer. At the same time, he or she serves as a narrator of the program. The observer functions as the most influential factor in the storytelling of the observation entertainment program. In the observation entertainment program, 'observation' is only a form. It is the observer who creates a narrative within this same format to make the difference between each program. Also, voyeurism has been considered a problem in reality shows such as observation entertainment programs. However, the form communicated by observers is not a direct peek, so much of the problem of voyeurism is mitigated. Such observation entertainment programs analyzed through observers are meaningful in that they make people understand the cultural meaning of "reality" in TV and the storytelling of contemporary Korean TV entertainment.