Longevity in Reality TV: How Survivor Outwits, Outplays and Outlasts

This book outlines the various ways the award-winning American reality competition show, Survivor, has been able to outwit, outplay, and outlast for twenty-seven seasons. This competition tests the physical, mental, emotional, and social limits of anyone who is willing to be “stranded” on a deserted island in order to have the chance to win $1,000,000. As contestants try to adapt to their new island lifestyle, producers try to adapt new ways to keep the audience engaged from season to season. This book gives readers a detailed history of how the show came to be as well as predictions for the future of Survivor. It also analyzes the successes and hardships the show has seen over its twenty-seven years on air. While the game challenges, contestants, and ratings are constantly changing from season to season, the premise of this social experimental reality television show has always remained the same: to “outwit, outplay, and outlast” the competition.

Nogales, AZ raised, Natasha Harrison graduated from the University of Arizona with a Bachelor of Science in Marketing and a Bachelor of Arts in Media Arts. She was named College of Fine Arts Outstanding Senior in 2013. Natasha thanks Dr. Brad Schauer for his guidance, Joe Murata for sharing Survivor, and her parents Edye Riharb and Todd Harrison.