Reality TV saturating life in the real world

The Philadelphia Inquirer reports:

It's almost bigger than reality itself.

Reality TV, that is. This month, CBS's Survivor, the show that opened the floodgates, turns 10 years old.

In its wake came hundreds of such shows, until reality now dominates cable channels and broadcast networks.

For the week ending May 9, the three top broadcast shows were all reality: Dancing With the Stars on ABC led (19.64 million viewers), followed by Fox's American Idol on Wednesday (19.58 million) and Tuesday (17.50 million).

Cable channels, too, are in love with reality, which gives them their hottest shows: Hoarders on A&E, Real Housewives (Bravo), Deadliest Catch (Discovery), Pawn Stars (History), Love Games (Oxygen).