The Retort

It Could Be Worse; You Could Be a Reality TV Star

November 4th, 2011 by Melinda Wood Of The Retort Staff

I admit I am not high-brow when it comes to television. I am not the type to sit and watch PBS or news programs. For some reason there is something addicting about watching reality stars crash and burn spectacularly. I really enjoy watching the shows where the women run around with vapid looks on their faces while drinking hard liquor and whining about how they just can’t seem “to find the one.” Oh and the men on these shows? Running around with fake tans and gold chains, apparently they are stuck in a time warp where disco never died and being a big old jerk gets the girl every single time.

Jersey Shore, I must admit, confuses me a bit. I like reality shows with some sort of contest or prize at the end. Like at the end of it you get to sleep with a washed up rock star (oh yay!), but Jersey Shore doesn’t seem to even have a prize at the end. Maybe the contest is who can keep their liver functioning longest.

So why watch reality shows? Well, as my friend Rachel says, “It makes me feel like a freaking genius.” I agree. After struggling through a bad day of classes, watching a mindless fluffy show where everyone seems perplexed by the simplest things does make a person feel like their life is certainly more on track than other people. Sure, we all have our problems, but let’s thank our lucky stars that we don’t have cameras documenting our slipups.

I am glad that there are people with no shame that let cameras follow their every move, it is highly entertaining. So next time you get a bad grade or forget to do something important just remember that it could be worse, you could have the IQ of the Jersey Shore cast.