Popularity of TV Documentaries

 Popularity of TV documentaries 

The world-wide expansion of streaming services has allowed for the rise in popularity of TV documentaries – pretty much every major studio and network has its own streaming service i.e. Disney+, Paramount+ etc, and obviously these services need a lot of content. This growth has allowed one genre of media to rise above the rest: the TV Documentary. From the years 2018 to 2021, the demand for TV documentaries has grown by a staggering 142%, making them the fastest growing genre on streaming, and that number is growing every year and has no signs of slowing down. Some theorise that the increase in popularity of TV documentaries is because of the pandemic, when people were stuck in their homes with nothing to do. This isolation and change from normal, daily life made them eager for genuine, authentic, non-fictional content to make them feel more connected to the world and those around them, and to indulge in whatever entertainment they could to starve off boredom. Furthermore, the rise in TV documentaries can be credited to their frugality - You don’t have to be the owner of a major studio in Hollywood to understand that documentaries are cheaper to produce than those huge sci-fi movies or series. You don’t need A-list actors, elaborate sets, or expensive CGI. You just need an interesting topic, some old footage, a few experts on the subject to unload all the information they have onto the audience; they're quite low risk but can still have a powerful reach and influence.  

It also helps that the subject diversity in the genre has wildly expanded from niche, educational topics to anything that you want to know a lot about, making the genre easily bingeable. This means that it can appeal to a wide range of different target audiences.  For example, TV documentaries that explore criminal cases will statistically appeal to white women around the age of 25-45, whilst documentaries about history predominantly appeal to a male-dominated, over 30s audience.