She made HOW much?!?!??



Toni Morrison



Snooki

Reality stars are America’s new celebrities.

Being a reality TV star has become a job. A job I’m sure none of them are complaining about; they asked for it, after all!

Wet Paint, an entertainment news site, has reported that for season 3 of Jersey shore cast members were paid about $30,000 per episode! That salary doesn’t even include the money they make on the side. DJ Pauley D makes up to $80,000 for DJing one week. One week!! That’s more than a lot of people make in a year! To show up and have their pictures taken at a red carpet event, some of the more prominent cast members, like Mike “the Situation” Sorrentino, can make up to $20,000 per appearance. Talk about ridiculous!

If these reality TV stars had actually contributed something worthwhile to society I could understand the amount of money they are raking in. However, as much entertainment as they bring to our lives, that probably isn’t enough to warrant tens of thousands of dollars.

Recently, an uproar was made when Snooki, a Jersey Shore cast member, made more than Nobel prize-winning Toni Morrison to speak at Rutgers University.

As big a fan as I am of reality TV, there just might be something wrong with the priorities in this situation. I enjoy Snooki, I think she’s hilarious, but I can guarantee she probably doesn’t have something more valuable to input than a Nobel prize-winner.

I think this is where our society is right now though. We’re so focused on finding the next celebrity that at times I think we lose focus on what really matters. I’m guilty of this too. We get so wrapped up with what we see every day it’s easy to lose sight of what’s important.

So here’s my call to action: enjoy celebrities, reality stars, every day people for the entertainment they bring you. But don’t forget what really matters in society and in life because what really matters is every bit as fascinating!