Shame on you: leave my TV alone

I consider myself to be a fairly smart person. I read The New York Times every day, I understand world politics and I can hold my own in just about any conversation. But my ultimate guilty pleasure is reality television. And by reality TV, I mean the trashiest television possible. Keeping Up with the Kardashians, check. The Real Housewives of wherever, check. Any random television marathon that I stumble upon, I’ll definitely watch it.

I can’t help but like the outlandish drama that unfolds before my eyes. Maybe because my life is so boring, the only drama I can get is on television. But maybe that’s not the worst thing. As I’m writing this, I’m watching a Keeping Up with the Kardashians marathon in preparation for the new season premiere.

People like to make fun of me for my guilty pleasure. I mean, it’s not so much a guilty pleasure because I’m very vocal about my love of trash TV. But I see the scowl on some people’s faces whenever I bring up the Kardashian family in conversation. The disdain is apparent. I used to feel like I had to justify myself in my television habits. But I don’t do that anymore. Why do I have to justify what television shows I like? So what if I like to unwind while watching old seasons of Keeping Up with the Kardashians? There are definitely television shows that people watch that I turn my nose to, but I definitely don’t say anything to them. Well, except now.

Let’s be real: different people have different television preferences. And that’s completely normal. I try not to judge people’s television habits, but when they criticize mine, I can’t help but bite back. I get defensive and pull out the whole “smart” card. But why do I have to say I’m smart in order to watch trashy television? Watching trashy television doesn’t diminish my academic achievements or my political knowledge. It adds another facet to me; it adds to my popular culture knowledge. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

You never know how people unwind or what their secret television habits are. Now I’m not saying everyone watches trashy television like I do, but they could be watching something you may not want to watch. But hey, you could be watching something people may normally never turn on.

So let’s stop shaming people based on the television shows they watch. People are entitled to watch anything they want without judgment. Everyone has their guilty pleasures, be it television, music or movies. And who am I to judge your favorite show? If you don’t judge me, I won’t judge you.