Photo: Courtesy of MTV

They’re so bad, they’re good, and although they’re often coined as “trashy” TV, we’re brave enough to fess up and say: we’re addicted to reality TV. Hookups, girl fights, crying, pranks, and backstabbing are nothing out of the ordinary in some of the most popular reality shows out there today. Networks like MTV, E! and VH1 have us hooked to shows like Celebrity Rehab (who doesn’t love Dr. Drew?), Real World, The Bachelorette, Keeping Up With The Kardashians, Jersey Shore, and The Challenge Cutthroat,the list goes on (come on…who can say they didn’t watch this past seasons Real World: Las Vegas? We couldn’t believe Dustin had the hidden past that he did!).

Photo: Courtesy of MTV

Tonight marks the season 3 premiere of MTV’s hit, Teen Mom. On last season, we watched as four new moms struggled with life as young parents, some without a partner or parents for support. As they’re raising toddlers in this season, they face some of the toughest times thus far. Tune in tonight at 10/9c on MTV for the season 3 premiere.

Photo: Courtesy of MTV

Jersey Shore had some of the highest ratings in MTV’s history, and although it’s pretty embarrassing to admit…we’ll probably stick around for the new season, which will be filmed in Florence, Italy. Note: None of the cast speaks a word of Italian despite their self-proclaimed “guido” heritage. Needless to say, next seasons bound to top them all. Maybe it’s that our lives seem so dull compared to the lives of “reality stars,” so watching over-the-top dramatic throw-downs on Jersey Shore, or an emotional breakdown on The Real World compels us to keep watching. It’s as if we know they’re bad and often scripted, yet we just can’t take our eyes away…a guilty pleasure to say the least. Is it that we enjoy watching (and sometimes laughing) at other peoples mishaps and failures? An even scarier question: have our minds become so ingrained in the reality TV world that it’s now become the formula for good ratings? Will the cycle ever end? When it comes down to it, this kind of TV has no redeeming value that we can justify. Whatever the reason (or excuse) that we find ourselves trying to explain the rationality for watching “reality” shows, there’s no denying it: they’ve got us hook, line, and sinker.