[Commlist] PhD Studentship opportunity: Reality TV, intimacy and informed consent

Please see attached a link to a new PhD studentship opportunity 
supervised by myself and Dr Katy Pilcher at Aston University and

connected to the broader ReCARETV project with Dr Jilly Kay at 
Loughborough University and Dr Jack Newsinger at Nottingham University.

Please do pass on to your interested students.

Many thanks Helen

R230220 PhD Studentship (3 years) Reality Television, Intimacy and 
Informed Consent - Jobs at Aston 
<https://jobs.aston.ac.uk/Vacancy.aspx?ref=R230220>

*Closing Date: *24^th  October 2023 at 23.59 (UK time)

*Supervisor: *Professor Helen Wood**

**

Applications are invited for a three-year PhD studentship, supported by 
the College of Business and Social Sciences to be undertaken within the 
Sociology and Policy 
<https://www.aston.ac.uk/bss/social-sciences-and-humanities/departments/sap> department 
at Aston University.

*The position is available to start in January 2024.*

*Financial Support*

This studentship includes a fee bursary to cover the home or overseas 
fees rate, plus a maintenance allowance of £18,622 in 2023/4.

*Background to the Project*

What do ‘duty of care’ and ‘informed consent’ mean in the context of 
reality television which assumes relational and sexual intimacy? Can new 
guidelines take into account the gendered politics of consent and to 
what extent would ‘intimacy co-ordination’ be appropriate for unscripted 
television? This PhD project covers an aspect of research that is 
closely aligned to the externally-funded Re CARETV which investigates 
working practices and duties of care in reality television with 
Professor Helen Wood, and involves working closely with an expert on 
sexualised labour, Dr Katy Pilcher. The wider project considers the 
enhanced requirements around duty of care to reality TV participants in 
the UK, and the impact of new duties of care guidelines for 
broadcasters. Whilst protocols are continually being developed to 
support the mental health of participants, and ‘informed consent’ means 
that broadcasters must ensure that participants should understand the 
risks of their participation, there has been very little attention paid 
to the forms of sexual and relational intimacy that are often encouraged 
in, and even central to, many reality formats. This lack of scholarly 
and policy discussion exists despite the proliferation of dating and 
romance reality formats which frequently entail intense forms of 
intimacy. Whilst scripted film and TV production now recognise the need 
for the new production role of the ‘intimacy coordinator’ to ensure the 
wellbeing of actors who perform sex scenes or other intimate scenes, 
they are rarely used in unscripted production. There are further ethical 
dilemmas facing participants and producers when images are repurposed 
for other types of digital content. How can consent be managed in such a 
dynamic context? The changing ecology of work, and the blurring of 
boundaries between the cultural work of reality TV performance and 
sexualised labour, suggest scope for a research project focussed on the 
interrelationships between reality production and duties of care; 
intimacy and informed consent; and sexualised labour and cultural work, 
which will have impactful applications associated and supported by the 
wider research project Re CARETV. This PhD project therefore offers a 
unique opportunity to get research training as part of a wider project team.

*Person Specification*

The successful applicant should hold the equivalent of a UK First or 
Upper Second Class Honours undergraduate degree from an approved 
university or higher education institution. They should have been 
awarded, or expect to achieve, a Masters degree in a relevant subject 
with an overall degree classification of at least Merit (or an 
equivalent qualification from an overseas institution).

*Contact information*

For formal enquiries about this project please contact Professor Helen 
Wood (h.wood3 /at/ aston.ac.uk) <mailto:(h.wood3 /at/ aston.ac.uk)>

R230220 PhD Studentship (3 years) Reality Television, Intimacy and 
Informed Consent - Jobs at Aston 
<https://jobs.aston.ac.uk/Vacancy.aspx?ref=R230220>


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