The "Situation" with Reality T.V.

I’m going to start off by being honest; I didn’t have to watch any extra television to get my fix of reality t.v. In fact, I get my fix of reality t.v. on a daily basis for the most part. As an avid viewer of the stuff, I definitely think that it’s a little bit harder to see the wrong in it all. Still, some of the questions proposed are very thought provoking. Even though it may be cliché to pick what seems to be the most popular reality t.v. show at this time, I’m going to focus my attention on The Jersey Shore. Yet, not just on the show itself, but the cast. And even more specifically, Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino. I did some research and according to realitytea.com, “The Situation” has made an astonishing $5 million over the past year alone. So, to answer the question proposed, “is it ‘real’ people in real situations?”, the answer must be no, right? Just think, we are no longer viewing regular, real people just like you and me. We’re watching millionaires, celebrities at this point. I think it’s pretty fair to say that “The Situation” himself is well aware of his own situation at this point. He has been put in the position to make big bucks and has done nothing less than thrive on it, taking full advantage of his “fifteen minutes of fame” to make as much money as possible. It isn’t just about a reality t.v. show for him anymore. For example, consider his decision to further his career (as I would call it at this point, an acting career) and participate on one of ABC’s most popular shows, “Dancing with the Stars.” Do you really think that his decision was based on his desire to learn how to dance? Come on, let’s be honest here, he’s being smart and taking advantage of this glimpse of fame to make as much money as possible while he can. Gawker.com states that “everyone gets $125,000 for signing up and being on the first two episodes” of the show. Likewise, he has recently made a commercial with Vitamin Water, which, who even knows how much money he’ll get for that. The point being, it’s no longer the reality t.v. show (or even the entertainment aspect for that matter) that Mike Sorrentino is concerned about. So, that said, what’s making The Jersey Shore reality television at this point? I mean, aren’t we just watching millionaires and actors at this point doing their best to keep us entertained? As I watched this past season, I noticed “The Situation” doing his best to stir the pot in the house and keep things interesting: Jersey Shore. Let’s be honest, the guy’s pretty smart. The man is living the life right now, getting paid millions to do basically nothing, and he knows that the only way to keep his “job” at this point is to satisfy the audience. Ironically, the audience happens to be most drawn towards the violence, fights, and drama that he, himself (whether he wants to admit it or not), is seemingly starting on purpose. He knows what the audience wants to see and he knows what needs to happen for him to continue living the life he is now. It makes me wonder whether or not his actions are actually staged by his own self at times. Oh, and I forgot to mention one of Mike’s other major roles in the show. That is, bringing girls home (seemingly on a nightly basis) to sleep with. As Gabler mentioned, sex is a big part of what makes reality so captivating. At the end of the day, the question remains: why, as a society, are we so addicted to reality television? The concept is mind-boggling, especially while taking into consideration the discussion above. Clearly we aren’t watching The Jersey Shore because we can relate to the cast at this point, for that last I checked, most of our society didn’t consist of multimillionaires.
Here’s another link that I found while browsing that I thought was pretty interesting and, well, pathetic: 11 People Who Earn Less Than The Situation.