The Jersey Shore: A Reality train wreck
By Marin, CITYterm Fall 2010
We are all exposed to the world of reality television. Shows such as Survivor and The Amazing Race started television on a roller coaster ride of shows that, “presents purportedly unscripted dramatic or humorous situations, documents actual events, and usually features ordinary people instead of professional actors,” as defined by Wikipedia. But when does reality go to far? To the point where the concept for a show is to have poofed, spiked, muscle head, tanned, saline filled Italians, affectionately called Guidos and Guidettes, spend a summer together in a house. The show chronicles them as they spend their time fighting over who slept with who, girls having cat fights, clubbing, and occasionally doing this thing called working to earn their stay in the house. Welcome to the Jersey Shore.
Many ask, why have a show that focuses around the lives of trashy 20 year olds getting wasted and clubbing? What makes a show do good that is draws 5.5 million viewers to watch each episode? I believe it’s like the phenomenon of driving by a car accident. It’s morbid, sad, and disturbing, yes, but you just can’t look away. The show itself has drawn negative feedback from different media sources, including Time Magazine, over the terms Guidos and Guidettes, as they are “awful anti-Italian stereotype peddied on jersey shore,” written in the New York Daily News. As well as there being anger over the portrayal of Italians, many residence from both New Jersey, mainly the Jersey Shore area, and Miami are desperate for the show to leave their area. In a recent Quinnipiac University poll, 51% of Garden state residence has an unfavorable view of the show, while only 11% had a favorable view. The rest were undecided. At SILive,the main issue was over the fact that many local residence of the Jersey shore saw the cast and show in general as giving the area a bad reputation. Local resident John La Stalla, say, ""You're trying to create a family town, and you got a bunch of kids acting very rude, and it doesn't create a good image." Many residence have also been upset due to the publicity they are getting, since they feel it is over-rated. Cast members of the show have appeared on such major television programs as Jay Leno, Jimmy Kimmell, and multiple award ceremonies. As well as being looked down upon, maybe people just see the show as a joke. YouTube videos making fun of the characters are common, as well as cartoons portraying the characters in a malicious way. However to many, their over the top exhibits of violence, drama, and partying have earned them the right to be laughed at as the trash of American society. CITYterm student Wyatt Scruggs believes that, "the Jersey Shore is purely on television for entertainment purposes, and really has no purpose. It shows that people will watch something just to make themselves feel better since the cast is dehumanized and derogatory towards women and others. It has no educational purpose and clearly is just for laughs."
However, some people see the “juiceheads,” as something to benefit from, including the Jersey shore store owners and law enforcement written in a recent MTV article. Since the beginning of the show last year, Seaside Heights has boomed economically. Shops on the boardwalk are booming, and the area is busy year round as tourists flock to the shore in search of the cast. As many store owners say, you can’t pay for exposure. With characters with names such as “Snookie,” and “Jenni J-WOW”, Jersey shore has become a revolutionary new reality show that draws in all types of viewers. Who doesn’t love cat fights, drama, and people that are so embarrassing that its funny? Jersey shore is definitely a train wreck, and while many media sources agree, it’s one I wont be looking away from any time soon.
FIST PUMP
ReplyDeleteGTL
SHNOOKERZ
This is interesting becuase of the twist at the end. I never would have seen it coming that you'd say you like the show. Another thing that's really good is I can tell you've really done your research. I like all the different opinions, especially the ones from the residents, and how you give both sides of the fight. Your hyperlinks are helpful, especially because I don't watch Jersey Shore. This article is written for anyone, not just fans or haters. Awesome! :) -Mary T.
ReplyDeleteYou do a great job of starting your article with questions, so that you have many options to explore later in your piece. You also do a great job producing a variety of different sources and quotes so that we can see the perspectives of other people, not just yourself. I wish we would have heard a little more about what you think, though. We do get a hint of what you think about the show at the end, but it would have been nice to hear more about your thoughts of the show. Great use of hyperlinks, I was directed to many useful sites!! Great Work!! -Mary R.
ReplyDeleteI really like this one as a topic! You give both kinds of opinions with quotes and evidence from both. The fact that you quote Wyatt is great! I agree with Mary though. It was a surprised when you said that you like the show, I think maybe you should have talked more about your opinion. Im excited to talk more about this with you. :)
ReplyDelete-Lauren
Marin, I am especially interested in your topic because I was also planning on writing about Jersey Shore. When I first began watching reality television in middle school, I was naive enough to believe that to some like Lauren Conrad and Ryan Sheckler, this was their reality. I'd be interested to hear more about the process of making reality TV shows and how they put in the "drama." I really liked that you included the local resident's view because sometimes we forget about something's implications unless we see it. Very insightful!
ReplyDelete-Lara
Well done Marin. I have never seen an episode of Jersey Shore and I loved having this as my first real impression. I really like how you focused on the show's impact on its viewers. Also, I especially like the car accident analogy. Cool
ReplyDeletewhat's interesting to me about the jersey shore phenomenon is that so much buzz for the show was created before it even aired. snooki had already been on "is she really going out with him", and the ads were creating a huge hype. it's interesting to me that you choose to differentiate between the show itself and the viewing population of the show. to me, the problem of the jersey shore lies not in the content, but in the reaction of the viewership. whether MTV was on the jersey shore or not, these events probably would have happened in slightly less scripted fashion; the fact that MTV cameras were there opens up the entire scenario to the judgement of usually-harsh teenagers and 20-somethings. some may argue that the show itself is a parody and a "minstrel show" (as many articles do), but i think it's just as legitimate to describe the show as an honest portrayal of a subset of modern american society. it only becomes a parody when people start making fun of that lifestyle, which clearly does more to divide people into hater and lovers of the show. i, for one, will keep watching, whenever it's on. and hey, snooki lives in poughkeepsie, so maybe we'll see her on the metro-north one day ... great work marin!
ReplyDeleteI really like how you don’t revile that you watch jersey shore until the very end I was convinced that you hated the show and didn’t understand why anyone would ever watch it. Then at the end it was a surprise. You use of hyperlinks was also really good is someone had no experience with jersey shore this would have been really helpful. I would like know a little more about the teens that are so obsessed with this show and why. I liked the surprise at the end of your opinion but I would be interesting to know your take on why you like it so much.
ReplyDelete-Lucy