Committee publication · Correspondence · 21 April 2026

Letter from Professor Helen Wood, Professor of Media and Cultural Studies and Principal Investigator at ReCARETV, regarding concerns about reality television, 8 April 2026

From: Culture, Media and Sport Committee

Summary

Professor Helen Wood and the ReCARETV research team report that despite Ofcom's 2021 Broadcasting Code changes, reality television participants continue experiencing serious harms including mental health crises, sexual assault allegations, and bullying. Their three-year AHRC-funded study of 119 interviews found one-third of participants reported serious harm post-2021. They highlight ineffective complaint mechanisms and request the committee review duty-of-care protections in unscripted production.

Key findings

One-third of reality TV participants interviewed reported experiences consistent with serious harm, including suicidal ideation, PTSD, sexual assault allegations, and racism, despite Ofcom's 2021 Broadcasting Code updates
High-risk formats based on emotional intensity, conflict, isolation from family, and low participant autonomy create conditions for trauma
Ofcom's post-broadcast complaint mechanism is ineffective: many participants unaware of it, serious complaints marked 'not entertained' without published statistics, and the process risks re-traumatising complainants
Television production crew face worsening conditions, job insecurity, poor mental health, and pressure to participate in morally compromising situations
Confidentiality clauses in participant contracts deter victims from sharing experiences, limiting visibility of actual harm scope

Tone

Critical

Topics

broadcastingsafeguardingmental-healthworker-rightsregulatory-effectiveness

Key actors

Professor Helen Wood, Dr Jilly Kay, Dr Jack Newsinger, Dr Mhairi Brennan, Ofcom, Caroline Dinenage, Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee

Notable line

“… experiences, with a third presenting experiences that might be considered to include serious harm. Examples include: • Mental health impacts of trauma e.g.”

Key Quotes

“Our research has found that this is a mixed picture and whilst there is considerable evidence of good practice, half of our interviews and questionnaire sample after the code change report having negative experiences, with a third presenting experiences that might be considered to include serious harm.”
— Professor Helen Wood et al. · Assessing effectiveness of 2021 Ofcom code changes

“The most serious issues reported to us were associated with certain "high risk" shows where formats are based upon emotional intensity and conflict, in which participants are cut off from friends and family, and have the least control over their experiences.”
— Professor Helen Wood et al. · Identifying vulnerability factors in reality TV production

“Many participants did not know that they can complain to Ofcom, but in our data, there are examples where participants tell us of serious complaints being made that are "not entertained".”
— Professor Helen Wood et al. · Describing gaps in complaint mechanisms

“Having complained to production companies, the broadcaster, and then to Ofcom this outcome can be re- traumatising.”
— Professor Helen Wood et al. · Highlighting harm caused by ineffective complaint process

“We are concerned whether it is possible that a production can be found to be compliant with the code and yet serious foreseen harms can still occur.”
— Professor Helen Wood et al. · Questioning adequacy of current regulatory standards

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Source · parliament.uk record ↗