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Whether you watch it or not, it\\u2019s hard to ignore the TV reality show \\u2018Love Island\\u2019, which puts a bunch of semi-naked heterosexuals in a villa and tells them to \\u2018couple up\\u2019. It is firmly part of the zeitgeist and now set for two series a year. There\\u2019s a clear generational disagreement about the programme: 16-34 year olds are addicted to it; geriatrics can\\u2019t stand it. What does the success of \\u2018Love Island\\u2019 say about the state of television, and what does the state of television say about us, the viewers? Love Island\\u2019s detractors say it\\u2019s vacuous, vulgar and exploits its vulnerable young participants in a format designed to play with their emotions. They argue it\\u2019s also morally corrupting for those who watch it \\u2013 many of them impressionable adolescents with unrealistic expectations of relationships. Those who stick up for the show, including many parents of teenagers, say it contains moral lessons about modern relationships: fidelity, consent and dating etiquette. It is, they believe, both the Jane Austen of the post-millennials and a sex education primer for the over-50s. We live in the era of Tinder and Grindr where partners are selected with the swipe of a phone screen. Some worry about the effect this is having on the emotional intelligence of young people, while others say nothing\\u2019s changed; young lovers were always awkward fumblers and there\\u2019s nothing new about our obsession with good looks. Social psychologists talk about passionate love \\u2013 the kind that grips a couple in the first heady phase of their relationship; and companionate love \\u2013 the calmer state that follows, based on friendship, intimacy and commitment. Have we got our priorities right when it comes to love and relationships?

Producer: Dan Tierney