Documentary filmmaker Ken Burns has slammed reality television, which is too bad since he understands its appeal and could use his considerable talent to make the genre better. Burns’ Prohibition documentary is currently airing on PBS, and in an interview with the Telegraph , he said, “Reality tv is like dog droppings in the street. You just try to avoid it and keep going with what you’re doing.” He’s said things like this before . Yes, some reality TV is dogshit. But you know what, Ken? Some reality TV is art. Here’s a radical idea: Maybe you should make some and try to improve the genre that is part of the nonfiction spectrum on which your work exists. Part of the problem here is that the people who make high-quality reality TV reject the label because they’ve accepted the media’s narrative that “reality TV” means “poorly made stupid shit for dumb fucks” instead of embracing the idea that a genre can have many levels of quality. Who knew? It’s not like there’s a range of quality or...