I’ve been saying it all along. I give reality television shows another five years, tops, and they’ve run their course. Reality television, in some form, has been around as long as television. But the last decade has seen a huge spike in the number of shows being aired. But I think that’s about to change.

MTV announced yesterday that this season is the last for the Jersey Shore. Tears of joy sprang from my eyes upon reading that this vapid display of useless television, which I truly think makes one dumber each time it’s viewed, is going to be history. Of course, the spin off starring two of the cast members is entering its second season, but now that one of them has a baby, I suspect the viewership won’t care about them anymore. Unless you have more than eight babies, you don’t make good fodder for cable.

I never understood the lure of this show. Of course, I admit. I only saw a few episodes because my niece was living with us last summer, and she watched it while doing her nails and I was ironing. The basic storyline was following the zany antics of a bunch of kids from Jersey partying all summer. Big whoop.

But to my bigger point. Remember the days back in the late 1980s and early 1990s when it seemed that everyone had a talk show on television? The airwaves were so clogged with lousy talk shows, that they finally ran their course. And now, yes, there are talk shows, but the number pales in comparison.

Television is like that. Copycat programming is nothing new. But it gets to the point that it gets saturated, and people like us simply stop watching. Which we have. We only rent DVDs now. And leave the supposedly unscripted reality programs to those who like them. And I suspect that number will be dwindling.