how to get the main idea10 lines at least please A It is a trend that has spread across the globe: from Argentina to Sweden, South Africa to Brazil, Poland to the United States. The list goes on. No, it's not tattooing, extreme sports, or low-rider jeans. It's reality TV. Every week, viewers tune in to programs such as "Big Brother, " "Survivor, " and "Temptation Island" to watch real people eat, sleep, argue, make up, and so on—all on camera. In Spain alone, 30 million people have seen "Gran Hermano," the Spanish "Big Brother"—no small feat for a country of just 40 million. What makes reality TV so popular? Some argue that it's just good entertainment. Contestants on some shows can win up to a million dollars, and to many people that is interesting in itself. But others argue that reality TV appeals to the voyeur in all of us. Humans are naturally curious—they like peeking at other peoples' lives. Like popular talk shows, reality TV gives us the opportunity to look into other people's lives. B It is exactly this voyeuristic aspect that makes reality TV controversial. Reality television has raised a lot of questions about the ethics of 24-hour surveillance of human activity. Some say that it violates human rights. In France, for instance, "Loft Story" (the French version of "Big Brother") has been a huge hit. In the program, a group of 20-somethings live together in a loft under 24-hour surveillance. The goal of the show is to find a partner and win the house. One by one contestants are voted out of the house by their fellow contestants and viewers until only two remain. The winning couple continues living together for six more months (watched by 26 cameras) before they can claim their prize. It sounds benign enough, yet protesters demonstrated against the show, trying to pull it off the air. Eventually, the Conseil Superieur de l'Audiovisuel (CSA), the French broadcasting supervisory body, ruled that contestants must be allowed two hours of privacy per day out of respect for their "human dignity." Yet all of the controversy surrounding reality TV has not diminished its success. On the contrary, it has spurred more curiosity, attracting even more viewers. Television executives are most likely happy about all of the media attention their shows are receiving.