'Jersey Shore' lifestyle frustrating for working student

Whether you love it or hate it, MTV’s “Jersey Shore” has become a nationwide hit.

The success of many people’s guilty pleasure has spawned three successful seasons with the filming of a fourth set to start soon.

The off-the-wall cast members have become household names and basically have gained celebrity status. Since appearing on the show, the cast has had multiple public appearances at awards shows, in commercials and some even have their own books. Most recently, Rutgers University paid Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi $32,000 to speak at the school about her reality TV lifestyle. That’s $2,000 more than Nobel prize winning author Toni Morrison, who is scheduled to speak at the university’s commencement ceremony in May.

These seemingly average people now are all very recognizable figures in pop culture, but for what?

Essentially, an episode of “Jersey Shore” contains drinking, tanning, partying, working out, drinking, random hookups and fights in some varying order. The cast now has made a career out of partying and basically doing nothing of real value. In fact, the members of the shore house are rumored to make $30,000 per episode.

That’s not to say the cast can’t be entertaining. The group does have a great balance of characters and personalities that make for good television. The dynamics of the house are what make the show so attractive and people have come to expect certain things from certain cast members so much that they have their own following.

As if their stardom wasn’t overwhelming already, MTV recently announced two new spin-off shows featuring three members of the cast.

Set to air in 2012, Polizzi and Jenni “J-Woww” Farley, who are close friends away from the set of “Jersey Shore,” will have their own reality show that will document their relationship and everyday lives. Paul “Pauly D” DelVecchio, who is one of the most iconic characters in the show, also will be featured in his own spin-off show that follows his life as a DJ when he’s not being filmed on the beach.

According to MTV, the two projects have yet to be named.

When did the lives of these people become so interesting? The announcement of the spin-offs come as no surprise, as MTV likely is searching for its next cash cow. It was evident after the conclusion of the third season of “Jersey Shore” that the appeal of the nearly routine lifestyle of the shore only would take them so far. Even the addition of a new roommate in the house wasn’t enough to make the season seem fresh — one couldn’t help but feel the show was getting repetitive after Sam and Ronnie’s 100th fight.

This isn’t to say I don’t enjoy the show, I’ve been interested ever since I saw the pilot episode when the first season debuted. But it is sickening that these people are bringing in six-figure incomes for practically doing nothing. At least nothing of real value to society, that is.

I’m sure there are hundreds of kids on college campuses across the nation who would drool at the opportunity to be on national TV partying, drinking and basically acting like fools for thousands of dollars.

With the exception of Pauly D, who actually has a career as a resident DJ at Palms Las Vegas Casino and Resort starting this summer, these cast members have become celebrities for what some would consider irresponsible, trashy and classless behavior.

As a college student working to earn a degree and hopefully a sustainable career one day, it is sometimes disgusting to think these young people have made a living by partying and living a vacation life. Their only concerns are to make sure they still are entertaining to the viewers, which they usually cure with a couple more shots or a dramatic fight. Only in America can people get paid to be filmed partying and living it up on a house on the beach.

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