Precedents for television that portrayed people in unscripted situations began in the late 1940s. Queen for a Day (1945 -- 1964) was an early example of reality - based television. The 1946 television game show Cash and Carry sometimes featured contestants performing stunts. Debuting in 1948, Allen Funt 's hidden camera show Candid Camera (based on his previous 1947 radio show, Candid Microphone) broadcast unsuspecting ordinary people reacting to pranks. In 1948, talent search shows Ted Mack 's Original Amateur Hour and Arthur Godfrey 's Talent Scouts featured amateur competitors and audience voting. In the 1950s, game shows Beat the Clock and Truth or Consequences involved contestants in wacky competitions, stunts, and practical jokes. Confession was a crime / police show which aired from June 1958 to January 1959, with interviewer Jack Wyatt questioning criminals from assorted backgrounds. The radio series Nightwatch (1951 -- 1955) tape - recorded the daily activities of Culver City, California police officers. The series You Asked for It (1950 -- 1959) incorporated audience involvement by basing episodes around requests sent in by postcard from viewers.
when was the first reality tv show made
the late 1940s