Television shows used to be something that brought family together and aroused topics of interest among peers. They used to be high quality, meaning that they had very well-written story lines and the show, in simplest terms, was “good.”
Nowadays however, it seems as though the interest of the public has swayed. Instead of shows with a point, television channels such as the History Channel, The Learning Channel (TLC), and MTV have spewed out horrible shows left and right.
Starting off, The History Channel doesn’t seem like it is about history at all anymore. They went from broadcasting shows that were actually relevant to history to putting out shows that have nothing to do with history at all. For example, the show Ice Road Truckers has no point, but to show the dangers that extreme truckers face on the ice and on other dangerous roads.
In addition, you most likely have heard of the most recent child super star, Honey Boo Boo. Yes, Honey Boo Boo is a real thing. I’m not joking, look it up. Here Comes Honey Boo Boo is a reality show about Alana Thompson, Honey Boo Boo, who competes in numerous beauty pageants. The show is a spin off of Toddlers and Tiaras, and shows the family acting crazy, and disgustingly. While some have sense of mind and describe this show as “outrageous,” most of the country can’t seem to get enough of “Honey Boo Boo.” The “Learning” Channel used to feature shows that we’re educational, but now with such shows as Toddlers and Tiaras, Here Comes Honey Boo Boo, Cheer Perfection, etcetera, it would appear that a name change for TLC would seem appropriate.
Now we move on to MTV. Did you know that Music Television used to actually be about music? Mind blowing information, right? Now MTV has seemed to stray away from the music scene, and is now all about reality shows. The most famous ones are The Jersey Shore, 16 and Pregnant, and most recently, Buckwild. If one never watched these shows then they would not be missing anything. The Jersey Shore is about a group of “guidos” who stay in a house for the summer and party and fight the entire time. The series started in 2009, and just recently ended in 2012. However, there is a spinoff of the show entitled Snooki & Jwoww. 16 and Pregnant is a show which follows a group of pregnant teenagers from the time they are pregnant to the aftermath that follows. The show has been heavily criticized for promoting teen pregnancy, and has been on air since 2009, and seems to have no sign of stopping. And lastly, we have MTV’s newest show, Buckwild. Buckwild is a show about a group of young adults who live in the rural parts of West Virginia who make the best out of their rural small town setting by partying and participating in crazy, irresponsible behavior. This show has received negative attention from its own state senator, Joe Manchin, who stated that the show shines a negative light on West Virginia, and MTV is preying on those who will do anything for the camera.
By the rate at which the quality of television shows has been declining, I expect the worst for the future. And the worst part is that the shows I have listed are among the most watched shows in all of television. This shows the television companies to keep making shows like this, because people will watch them, which means more money for them.
Good thing I have my Netflix.
