Whereas with some movies the network's judgement is questionable as to what is actually offensive or not, most of the alterations done for this movie are justifiable. There were some parts of scenes of Reality Bites that were edited based strictly on the context of the situation presented. One excluded bit of a scene, where many of the major characters are passing around a homemade pipe, made out of a soda can, is understandable given that it intimates the possibility of drug use. Another scene, however, in the opening credits where Janeane Garofalo's character is shown lighting a cigarette, may only be offensive to certain viewers. But, considering that the major characters are shown smoking at numerous points in the movie, it becomes questionable as to why this little part was left out.
Time is the other major reason that movies are edited for television.
If a question arises over the justifiability of the omission of a scene, the answer is probably that it was edited for time. ABC was pretty good about only taking small pieces of the film. Only one entire scene, an argument between Ben Stiller's character and Winona Ryder's character, was completely removed. In the end, the scene proved not to be a major point in the plot. Other parts cut from the film included a brief shot of the cash registers at The Gap clothing store, to establish a location, as well as a few moments on the Good Times game that some of the characters are playing in the middle of the film.