Sideshow USA: Modern Freak Shows

However, while “freak shows” no longer have the same level of popularity, they have been able to attract a small audience and make a nice living for themselves. For example, Rachel Adams, author of Sideshow U.S.A: Freaks and the American Cultural Imagination, describes modern “freak shows” by stating, “Aware that scarcity or impending extinction are certain crowd pleasers, freak shows advertise not only the rarity of individual attractions, but the more general enterprise of human exhibition itself as a threatened practice” (Adams 211). Showmen have become aware that they need to change the way they advertise “freak shows” because people are more aware of their exploitative past. So, they advertise the shows in more of a family-friendly or

For instance, consider shows such as My 600 Pound Life and Ruby have audiences that were originally derived from “freak shows”. For instance, Laura Backstrom of the Sociological Forum, describes a comment made by an anonymous executive who stated, “The more extreme and unusual the angle, the more valuable a story is … There’s an innate morbid fascination. It’s the modern-day equivalent of a freak show” (Backstrom 692). This comment compares “freak shows” to these shows displaying obesity and that comparison is also true regarding the audience. “Freak shows” led to the discovery of a niche audience that was willing to watch these weird and unusual spectacles. Shows utilizing dwarfs can be categorized in the same manner. Actors such as Peter Dinklage and the late Verne Troyer were able to carve out respectable careers due to the niche audience. Without “freak shows”, dwarfs might not have had an opportunity to be treated seriously and have their talents fully put on display. However, “freak shows” have not only had an impact on shows about obesity and dwarfism, but they have had an impact on reality tv as a whole. Shows like Jersey Shore and Real Housewives can trace their popularity back to “freak shows”. This is because, at its core, “freak shows” display a spectacle of humanity and they put on display people who have some sort of strange or weird talent. In other words, they display people and acts that people would not see in a normal setting. Reality TV operates in a similar manner because they put on display a spectacle of humanity through outlandish characters that you might not see in a normal setting. Obviously, reality TV advertises to a different niche audience than “freak shows” did, but they both appealed to a curious audience that wants to be