As a junior here at PV High, I’m already beginning to learn that a very stressful year lies before me. With AP classes, extracurriculars, and SAT lessons to contend with, it’s a wonder I have yet to explode from all the pressure placed upon my shoulders. After a long day of cramming knowledge into my brain, I feel that sometimes there is nothing better to do except to plop myself down on the couch and to let my mind relax while watching something decisively un-intellectual on television. After a particularly tough day, this ‘something’ might be a good old episode of the infamous reality TV show: “Here Comes Honey Boo Boo”.
Now, I’m not the biggest fan of the show, but I understand why one might want to be. The program follows the life of 6-year-old beauty pageant contestant, Alana Thompson, the renowned “Honey Boo Boo”, and the rest of her family, which includes her 3 peculiar sisters and her voluptuous mother June, a.k.a. “Mama”. The Thompsons live in McIntyre, Georgia, where they delight in practicing quirky family traditions like couponing and guzzling shots of Red Bull and Mountain Dew. They are sassy, self-assured, and eerily fascinating. Yet “Honey Boo Boo” is constantly labeled as junk, a sad symbol of decaying Western culture.
I don’t disagree that Honey Boo Boo isn’t high quality television, but it’s certainly not junk. In fact, I think the Thompsons can send us all a valuable message. They’re self-proclaimed rednecks, but they’re proud of it – in fact, they encourage viewers to “redneck-ognize”. Their odd family lifestyle is displayed on national television and they have no shortage of “haters”, but the Thompsons never hesitate to remind us that they don’t give a damn what anyone thinks of them. They’re not concerned with their appearance or their reputation. They’re overweight, they’re socially abnormal, they’re erratic – but they’re happy! And at the end of the day, isn’t that a lesson that we can all benefit from?

Another reality TV show that I occasionally treat myself to is MTV’s “16 and Pregnant,” a show that follows the unfortunate pregnancies of several 16-year-old girls. Like “Honey Boo Boo,” “16 and Pregnant” is criticized as trashy and overly dramatized. One time, my father, who numbers among these critics, came home to find me slumped on the couch, soaking in the wonders of the show. He was quick to let me know how he felt about my choice of programming: “Why are you watching that garbage?” he asked, not expecting any good answer.

I personally enjoy watching the show for its comedic value: I have to laugh at the overdramatized manner in which the show is put together. But whatever the reason for watching, 16 and Pregnant is undeniably entertaining. It’s sweet, endearing, and heart-wrenching at times, but always optimistic. Most importantly, it’s educational. To have a popular television show highlight the horrors of teen pregnancy is invaluable in spreading the message of safe sex or even abstinence to our generation. However sleazy the show may be, if it results in at least one young girl stopping and thinking before taking hasty actions that could result in an unwanted pregnancy, then I think it serves a purpose. Naturally, this is what I informed my father: “Do you want me to get pregnant, dad?” I retorted. “If not for this ‘garbage’, maybe I wouldn’t know better.”

Some people watch reality TV just because it’s fun, and there’s nothing wrong with that. We all have the prerogative to spend our time the way we want, and if reality TV is what makes people happy, then there should be no problem with it. But past that, reality TV truly does serve educational purposes. From the lives of these marginalized people we can acquire useful knowledge about the best way to live ours. Even better, we can do it all while enjoying the understated jiggle of “Mama”’s neck fat.