The falling number of fall broadcast reality shows

Gordon Ramsay's Hell's Kitchen is the only prime-time reality series Fox will in the fall 2016. (Photo by Tyler Golden/FOX)

by Andy Dehnart 20 May. 2016 | 2:07 pm

There are 91 hours of programming scheduled by the big five broadcast networks this fall. Nine of those will be reality television, and that’s just six shows altogether. That’s down from 12 hours on prime-time broadcast in the fall of 2015. (These numbers do not include news (60 Minutes, 20/20) or football.)

The following shows were on last fall’s schedules but aren’t here this year:

The Amazing Race, CBS, which will not air until sometime midseason
Masterchef Junior, Fox, not on the schedule
World’s Funniest, Fox, fate unknown
America’s Next Top Model, The CW, cancelled
Best Time Ever with Neil Patrick Harris, NBC, cancelled

Those five absences are offset by two gains:

Caught on Camera with Nick Cannon, NBC
Hell’s Kitchen, Fox, back for its 16th season

Before anyone goes off and writes REALITY IS DEAD DING DONG headlines, let’s remember that this last week alone, four shows were unscripted. Cable is still dominated by reality television.

And we’re about to see a flood of reality television across the television this summer—including many returning powerhouses on the big networks, such as NBC’s America’s Got Talent and American Ninja Warrior; CBS’ Big Brother; and ABC’s hit lineup of nostalgia fueled series and game shows, including Battlebots, Celebrity Family Feud, and this summer’s revival of The $100,000 Pyramid and Match Game.

What’s interesting to me is that broadcast networks still seem to be viewing reality TV as filler, placeholders, replacements for failed series, and/or summer-only fare. The fall appears to be reserved for scripted series—or at least, attempts to launch new scripted series.

Here is a rundown of the fall reality TV scheduled, as announced by the networks this week during their upfront presentations.