Valley Voices: Why we're drawn to reality TV

When CBS airs the 2011 People's Choice Awards on Jan. 5, the guilty pleasure category will be filled with reality TV series such as "Keeping Up With the Kardashians," "The Real Housewives of New Jersey" and "Jersey Shore."

The latter is MTV's show about a group of eight Italian-Americans, four guys and four girls. By day, they're in the gym, tanning and working at an ice cream shop. By night, they're getting drunk and ruling the club scene of Miami.

According to Nielsen TV ratings, the finale for "Jersey Shore's" second season attracted about 6.1 million viewers. They tuned in to watch the lovable gang, led by people nick-named "Snooki" and "The Situation," say their goodbyes to Miami Beach, where the show had been relocated after the first season, which was set in Seaside Heights, N.J.

Those numbers were up more than 400 percent from the show's first episode, which aired Dec. 3, 2009 and attracted about 1.4 million viewers, according to Nielsen. Among 12-34 year olds, the second season finale earned a rating of 6.1, a 27 percent increase over the first season's finale.

The characters on the show have no special talents or abilities. They weren't famous prior to the show.

So why do teenagers continue to watch "Jersey Shore?"

The show appeals to common feelings and experiences that today's youth go through, said Rachel Davis, a sophomore at Girls Preparatory School.

"It has hot Italian guys, plain and simple," Rachel said. "It's interesting for me, as a teenage girl, because I don't have much to gossip about at school, but there's always something to talk about with [Jersey Shore]."

The show has also created its own culture and lifestyle.

In November, Barbara Walters included "Jersey Shore's" cast in her special show listing the "10 Most Fascinating People of 2010," alongside Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and pop star Justin Bieber.

The show's success is no surprise to Michael Finnegan, a senior at Ooltewah High School.

"I'm a fan of their lingo and all the stupid things they do," Michael said. "All of the drama and stuff is hilarious."

Fans of the show also point to the cast's use of their own brand of slang, including words like "grenade" (a pretty girl's unattractive friend).

"You can pretty much have full blown conversations in Jersey Shore talk," said Jessica Powell, a senior at East Hamilton High School.

Most of all, teenagers said they are attracted to "Jersey Shore" because the characters on the show have the one thing that all teenagers crave: freedom.

"The guys and girls [on the show] just want to have fun and live life without rules, and they do," Jessica said. "Kids in my generation want to live like that."

Michael Ball is a student Chattanooga School for the Arts and Sciences.

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