Confessions of a Reality TV Junkie

Hi, my name is Hooked and I am a junkie. I can't go a day without turning my TV on and surfing the channels until I find a mildly amusing reality TV show that screams at me to watch it. From bridal shows to shows where everyone breaks a bone all the time, I am hooked.

15-20 years ago we were all into sitcoms. We would rush home after work or school, eat our dinner, and plop down on the sofa just so we can catch the new season of shows such as Family Ties, Murphy Brown, Saved by the Bell or any one of those other fabulous shows from back then. Sitcoms were as staple to the American peoples diet as was McDonald's. We simply could not get enough.

In the late 80's we seemed to come on an era when TV producers where beginning to try and reach out to a broader group of people, to give the viewing public something different. Something to sink our teeth into that would leave us wanting more. So came the birth of a new type of television. In 1989 a new show aired by the name of COPS. It basically followed countrywide police departments on everyday activities and showed the ups and downs of being a police officer. We got to see suspects maced, thieves running, carjackers and drug addicts. We got to see fights and traveled by TV to areas we have never been. It was an exhilarating ride that we wanted more of. If COPS came to your town, everyone crowded around them and wanted to get in the picture. It was a big deal that normal everyday people were being able to be shown on TV.