Miguel Martinez-Viera/Contributing Writer
Flipping through the channels, you stumble upon a scene of such indecency, that it makes you stop, and go, “Really?”
Now, how many of you have reached that same piece of flabbergasting, harshly stated, filth, and left the channel on, just to see what happens? That initial pique of curiosity then somehow, through some form of modern day alchemy, turns into a general intrigue, then, even more miraculously, into a genuine interest.
That’s when they’ve got you.
They’ve found a way to categorize these shows, which are overwhelmingly filled with substance equal to scum, into, what you can only assume is done with a heavy dose of irony, Reality TV.
You’ve got your major ones such as the human excrement puppets of the Jersey Shore, and the disturbingly trashy Honey Boo Boo, names more widely known than many of our most important thinkers. Then these shows also delve into makeovers (home or otherwise), cooking (taken to some odd extremes), and even wedding dress shopping. And the list goes on an on, almost ad infinitum.
At times you feel like this must be a joke, like the producers of these shows are just toying with you. But they are not.
They continue to crank out turd after turd for one reason: people are watching.
Perhaps it’s our voyeuristic tendencies, or fantasies, or maybe we just enjoy the little lie that, “perhaps these things are actually happening.” Deep down though, at least I hope, we all know it’s all utter bulls**t.
So why are we watching?
Could our curiosity be somehow related to our own innate selfishness to feel better about ourselves? Think about the absolute worst human being you could. Now turn on the TV, and with enough channel surfing, you’re sure to find their perfect proxy.
How many of you watch these shows with a mocking eye, where you criticize and laugh at the appalling individuals presented?
Is that it? Are we all just terrible people?
If that’s the case, then the media has certainly found the perfect way to manipulate us. These show’s ratings keep skyrocketing.
This infection of empty television is now so rampant, that many channels have almost entirely forgotten their initial purpose.
You’d be hard-pressed to find music on MTV, The History Channel has pretty much forgotten about the past, and, my favorite contradiction, The Learning Channel (TLC), teaches you nothing but how ridiculous a human can actually be.
Every channel has their own brand of “reality” that they push on you, just as every street corner once had their own drug to sell.
The masses now consume more reality than real life, and it leaves you wondering: How low can we go?
In the meantime, while you ponder that question, turn on the TV and enjoy what we’ve created.
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