DBWI: Survivor wasn't cancelled

We all remember "Survivor", one of the shows that sparked the short-lived "reality TV" craze of the early 2000's. The first two seasons were ratings smashes, finishing at #2 and #1 for the season, respectively.

However, the executives at CBS saw the ratings numbers drop during the third season. About 13 million watched the S3 premiere, as opposed to 45 million who watched the S2 premiere. The finale garnered higher ratings, but the show ended up with about a 20.1 rating overall, finishing at #8 for the season, significantly lower than it had the previous two seasons. The highbrows at CBS decided to cancel the show due to what they described as "budget cuts".

But what if the show wasn't cancelled? Would it bounce back in ratings? Would Jeff Probst still be active in show biz? Would "reality TV" still be around today?
 
Gameshow formats have proven popularity, but the more radical and ultimately unsuccessful proposals for Reality TV seem to be a good deal iffier. It seems like an interesting concept on paper, but I wonder how long they could keep viewers' interest with completely unscripted footage.
 
Survivor getting canceled sorta nipped the Reality TV craze in the bud, but I think that is a good thing. I mean wouldn't they have run out of ideas after while? What would we have now some sort of celebrity dance off show? If Survivor and a million other reality shows were still running would CBS had decided to take a chance on the new Star Trek: Phoenix series?
 
On second thought, I think ithe failure of reality TV must be something to do with American audiences. Koh-Lanta, a French programme running on a very similar format to the old Survivor show, is well into its 12th season at the moment.
 
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