Even though the war in Gaza is still ongoing, Israeli television has long ago returned to its regular programming. There’s "Master Chef" and "Dancing with the Stars," so why not have "Big Brother" as well? The new reality show season’s opening event, which continues on Monday, faced opposition and creative protest as if it were the only reality show shown in Israel.
These protests are part of the usual snobbery directed toward Big Brother, which allegedly represents everything bad about television. This is nonsense. Big Brother can convey important messages, and one can learn a lot about what’s really happening in Israel, more than from any other reality show, in fact. This is one of the reasons why this format has survived for so many years. It offers something far beyond entertainment.
If there was any question about how reality shows would look after October 7, the answer, according to Big Brother and its peers, is that there’s nothing new happening in Israel except the yellow ribbon representing the hostages in Gaza on the show hosts’ and participants’ suits, which seems to be a mandatory item.
At the beginning of the episode, Guy Zu-Aretz reminded viewers that Israel is at war, and how difficult it is to return to routine, almost apologizing for the broadcast.
The truth is, there’s no need for that. The train has left the station, and no one’s really complaining. Our hearts are with the hostages, but our eyes are on the new couple that will get to know each other on Big Brother, and we’re really eager to know who’ll take over the kitchen.
Our hearts are with the hostages, but our eyes are on the new couple that will get to know each other on Big Brother
Someone might feel a bit guilty for moving on, but it will pass much faster than we first imagined. Within two weeks, things inside the house will start heating up, and the contestants will try their hardest to deliver punchlines that will go viral on TikTok.
So following the apologies (which as mentioned are unnecessary) and the mentions of the hostages and October 7, Big Brother returned to its usual pace – too slow, with overly long introduction videos, a secret mission for the first two contestants, and exaggerated pathos in speeches by people who entered the Big Brother house to "show who they really are."
The problem is, no one knows who you are at this time, and you’ll be lucky if anyone remembers you in a few months. The naivety of some is still endearing: most are convinced they’ll win and become the biggest stars in the country.
I’ll risk a particularly wild prediction and write that Big Brother will top the Israeli ratings charts this season as well. There’s no force in existence that can stop this show, not even October 7. Big Brother might apologize for its very existence, but it just wants to entertain, giving viewers a few hours of escapism. But the story it tells here is much bigger. Big Brother may not want to be political, but it’s the best proof that we’ve learned to live as the war rages on.