In 2000, Survivor marked one of those moments in which a television show was so innovative that it became a pop culture icon

Millions watched, then caught updates on the morning talk shows. Its most memorable moments (or forgettable depending on whom you ask) included Richard Hatch's nudity and gross-out rodent-eating - all taking place in an artificially harsh environment with cameras rolling.

It was shallow at best, and it trivialized the lifestyle of tribal cultures to be sure, but Survivor led America's rush to so-called reality TV. Other offerings have included Big Brother, in which cameras filmed the antics of total strangers living together in one house, to any of a number of stupid dating shows.

The Survivor series remains a ratings leader; its sixth installment attracts 19.8 million viewers a week, according to the latest numbers.

But for me and surely for others, images from war in Iraq have made reality TV something other than entertainment.

"Reality" entertainment shows are money-makers for networks, yes, and they will be around long after the war. But for now, images from Baghdad - real reality TV - are helping us put the world in perspective.

Suddenly, the battle-of-the sexes contest now showing on Survivor Amazon is trivial, when you look at the last images coming out of the Middle East.

This is real reality TV at its finest.

You can't get much better than seeing people's jubilation over toppling Saddam Hussein's statue. Oppressed for so long by Saddam's ruthless regime, they dragged his huge bronzed head through the streets, and slapped it with the soles of their shoes, the ultimate insult.

We saw jubilance. We saw government offices looted. We saw mothers hoisting the children to the faces of soldiers for kisses. We saw frustration from years of oppression being vomited out - finally, Iraqi citizens dared to exhale.

One Iraqi told a reporter, "I'm 49, but I never lived a single day. Only now will I start living."

That's reality, and it's not irrelevant.

- Byron McCauley