These are the greatest reality shows of all time

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THE GOLDEN BUZZER HAS SPOKEN — ‘AMERICA’S GOT TALENT’ HAS BEEN CROWNED AMERICA'S FAVORITE REALITY TV SHOW, ACCORDING TO A NEW SURVEY.

A POLL OF 2,000 AMERICAN REALITY TV FANS FOUND THAT ‘AMERICAN IDOL’ (33%) TOOK THE NUMBER TWO SPOT. 

‘FAMILY FEUD’ (31%) FELL INTO THIRD, WITH MTV’S CLASSIC ‘CATFISH’ (29%) AND TLC’S DRAMA-DRIPPING ‘90-DAY FIANCÉ’ SERIES ROUNDING OUT THE TOP FIVE. 

CONDUCTED BY TALKER RESEARCH ON BEHALF OF JAM CELLARS, THE STUDY ALSO REVEALED THAT THE AVERAGE PERSON WATCHES REALITY TV FOUR DAYS PER WEEK, THOUGH 31 PERCENT ADMIT TO DOING SO EVERY SINGLE DAY. 

THIS TOTALS AN AVERAGE OF 10 HOURS OF REALITY TV VIEWING EACH WEEK, WITH 20 PERCENT LOGGING BETWEEN 10 AND 18 HOURS. 

MORE THAN TWO IN FIVE (43 PERCENT) WOULD EVEN LIKE TO BE A PARTICIPANT ON THEIR FAVORITE SHOW.

AMERICA’S TOP 30 FAVORITE REALITY TV SHOWS

• “America’s Got Talent” - 42%
• “American Idol” - 33%
• “Family Feud” - 31%
• “Catfish” - 29%
• “90 Day Fiancé” series - 28%
• “Hell’s Kitchen” - 27%
• “The Voice” - 27%
• “Shark Tank” - 25%
• “Pawn Stars” - 22%
• “Impractical Jokers” - 22%
• “Judge Judy” - 21%
• “The Masked Singer” - 21%
• “Survivor” - 21%
• “60 Days In” - 21%
• “1,000 lb Sisters” - 20%
• “Master Chef” - 20%
• “Dancing With the Stars” - 20%
• “Real Housewives” series - 20%
• “My 600 lb Life” - 20%
• “The Kardashians” - 20%
• “American Ninja Warrior” - 20%
• “Big Brother” - 19%
• “Storage Wars” - 19%
• “Dr. Pimple Popper” - 19%
• “The Bachelor” - 17%
• “The Bachelorette” - 17%
• “Chopped” - 17%
• “Top Chef” - 17%
• “Naked and Afraid” - 17%
• “Love Island” - 16%

AMERICA’S FAVORITE WINES TO SIP WHILE WATCHING REALITY TV

• Red wine - documentary-style reality TV, such as Big Brother or The Kardashians (45%)
• White wine - game shows or competition-style reality TV, such as Family Feud or the Amazing Race (32%)
• Rosé wine - talent reality TV, such as America’s Got Talent, American Idol or Dancing With the Stars (19%)
• Sparkling wine - physical endurance reality TV, such as Survivor or American Ninja Warrior (15%)

Survey methodology:

Talker Research surveyed 2,000 reality TV fans, ages 21+ split evenly by generation (500 Gen Z, 500 millennials, 500 Gen X and 500 baby boomers); the survey was commissioned by JaM Cellars and administered and conducted online by Talker Research between July 23 and July 30, 2024.