Dumb dumb dumb dumb: TV's stupidest shows

I haven't watched network TV in years, other than if someting of particular interest is on. Thank God for cable - History, Discovery, Science Channel, National Geo. I have never seen any of the shows mentioned, nor do I want to.

If you are looking for intelligence, you won't find it on tv.

I didn't see any Fox shows listed, in my opinion all their shows are dumb, Simpsons, Family Guy, American Dad...the list goes on

And this may be one of the dumbest articles ever written.

 "American Idol",  need I say more...

I can't lie. I've been watching Public T.V. both channel 11 and 20 here in Chicago.  I do watch local news and weather , then I turn to Channel 23 and 26 ( I think there are 2 others) to watch the 'OLD SHOWS". Lucy, Bewitched,Bob Newhart-- on Saturday or Sunday they have George Burns,Jack Benny  

ALL THIS NEW STUFF IS JUST full of cheating husbands,sex and things that are just not funny.   There is nothing interesting to watch. It's all garbage.

Thank your for validating my long term insistence that Two and a Half Men is the most idiotic show on television, not to mention its star is a liar, a cheat, a gambler, a druggie, an alcoholic, a wife abuser and the worst - Not Funny. He is also the highest paid actor on TV. It's a sick, sad world. I would cancel my cable if my wife would let me. Too many soap operas to tape though. Maybe I should add her to the list and cancel my relationship too.

How could that show about EARL not be included in this list??

Sounds like the author is just a bit threatened by the attractive women on Two and a Half Men: a feminazi who is too homely to compete?

And why are there so many "reality" shows focused on incredibly dull, talentless dimwits none of us care about?  FlavorFlav, Girls Next Door, Kimora, Tori Spelling, on and on and on and on and.....ad nauseum.  The world is full of interesting, fascinating, talented, creative people we could actually LEARN something from and be inspired by.  Come on TV....get with it.  TV is SUPPOSED to be full of creative thinkers, so why offer audiences so much nothingness?  You can do MUCH better.

To pretend that only some of TV plumbs the depths of stupid clearly indicates what Linda Holmes does with her spare time.

I will steal a previous post and add my own thought:

If you are looking for intelligence, you won't find it on tv.

And if you're looking for smart, you certainly won't turn to MSNBC.

I find that men like these stupid shows.  Get this, I can't get my stupid husband to stop watching old episodes of the Three Stooges and Beverly Hillbillies.  Talk about moronic!

For someone who thinks these shows are dumb, she sure knows a lot about them and attributes a lot of time to writing about them. Amazing what some people do for a living, and get paid for.

WOW

Dumb is in the eye of the beholder.  I enjoy two and half men, it's one of those shows that understands visual gags and low humor - not "dumb" humor.    I'd argue that "The Office" uses much of the same type of comedy, yet it's included as a good show.  Why? Since when is sleeping with a office salesperson any lower than sleeping with car salesperson (happened on respective shows).   Samantha who?  How long will that gag last - eventually it will need to end as people tire of ongoing "who am I".   I do agree that there are dumb shows out there, and I belive every reality show fits the bill. Again, this is my eye - and  apparently millions of people disagree with me.  I can live with that, and with your list.

Nearly since it's inception, television has been called the"Boob Tube" and the "Idiot Box".  Recently, most of the TV creators and writers have not even lived up to those levels of quality.

I agree that most reality shows are geared toward the 2-digit IQ audience. However, most modern sitcoms and dramas are lot sharper and wittier than those of 20 and 30 years ago. Try watching an episode of Gilligan's Island, Happy Days, Lavern and Shirley, Knight Rider, Dukes of Hazzard, etc. It's hard to believe they were on at prime time.

I'm guessing the writer has never actually seen an episode of Two and a Half Men and instead made a snap judgment based on the title and star that it must be low brow humor along the lines of Married with Children. The show wins Emmys because writers and diretors from Frasier and comedic veterans with good timing make it clever and witty.  

Gotta disagree with the article. Survivor is an extremely dumb show, filled with dumb people, watched by dumb people, and produced by dumb people.

But these dumb shows exist so you can temporarily relax. I like to watch the shows just to temporarily take my mind off the disturbing image of seeing a child's chalk outline on the road from being gunned down on the 6pm news or all the news is gloom, doom,  increased taxes ect..

So you think 30 Rock, The Office, and Samantha Who, are funnier than Two & A Half Men? This has got to be the biggest joke of an article I have read in a long time! The three shows that you mentioned are by far the stupidest, dumbest, dullest, over rated @!$%# on TV. Ya, Two and A Half is old comedy, but, you think in to days world people want to be told and shown how stupid they are, in those other sittings. AT least we all know that it is just made up stupid comedy, and doesn't try to be anything else. HELLO! That's why it wins awards and people watch it.

Sure, much of television is very smart, But there are parts of TV that richly explore the taxonomy of stupidity in a way that few ever pause to appreciate. Let us salute the many kinds of TV dumb.

I disagree.  It's not just much of television, but the majority of television.  I think the majority of ttelevision has always been stupid, dumb, idiotic, inane, etc.  Even attempts to create more enlightened programming and networks have been eventually "dumbed down." 

Sometimes it's good to just relax and not take things too seriously, but then it often become a lazy habit and predisposition.  I find it very annoying to even talk to people who cannot hold on to an intelligent conversation or keep focused for prolonged discussion.  With television, and to some aspect with the internet, we have created that outcome. 

What I do seem to notice, is that habits and market shares have seemed to change with the evolution of American television from the old big three networks (ABC, CBS, NBC), public television (PBS) and a slew of small independents.   Now you have a myriad of specialized cable/ satellite networks catering to every special interest, plus digital video recorders like TiVo.  This seems to have created a great divide between what people watch and how they spend time with their television.  Some people gravitate towards those idiotic, anti-intellectual shows; whereas, others, like myself, cannot satiate themselves with enough news, information, movies and documentaries.  I am often dumbfounded by which shows most people find themselves preoccupied.  Many of the most popular shows which most Americans watch, I almost never have viewed.    I think there are others just like me.  

Think about it, because I know that when I often talk to people at work or elsewhere these days, we don't necessarily have the same point of reference.  This is the new American society, where it seems that there is less of a common cultural base than what was before.  I believe this also has a larger social implication in our society, such as in politics and other social values.

I agree, I don't watch network televison either. No soaps during the day, no prime time at night, I watch PBS most of the time or BBC reruns or some of the old reruns like lucy,bewitched and a few others like that. The new television shows for the most part, stink big time.

And "Reallity TV" that sounds like an idea from one of Harry Harrison's Stainless Steal rat books, if I am not mistaken. It was something to keep the idle masses entertained so they wouldn't cause trouble for the government or notice what it was up to. I'd rather read the book! And keep an eye on the government!

Sure, much of television is very smart, But there are parts of TV that richly explore the taxonomy of stupidity in a way that few ever pause to appreciate. Let us salute the many kinds of TV dumb.

I disagree.  It's not just much of television, but the majority of television.  I think the majority of ttelevision has always been stupid, dumb, idiotic, inane, etc.  Even attempts to create more enlightened programming and networks have been eventually "dumbed down." 

Sometimes it's good to just relax and not take things too seriously, but then it often become a lazy habit and predisposition.  I find it very annoying to even talk to people who cannot hold on to an intelligent conversation or keep focused for prolonged discussion.  With television, and to some aspect with the internet, we have created that outcome. 

What I do seem to notice, is that habits and market shares have seemed to change with the evolution of American television from the old big three networks (ABC, CBS, NBC), public television (PBS) and a slew of small independents.   Now you have a myriad of specialized cable/ satellite networks catering to every special interest, plus digital video recorders like TiVo.  This seems to have created a great divide between what people watch and how they spend time with their television.  Some people gravitate towards those idiotic, anti-intellectual shows; whereas, others, like myself, cannot satiate themselves with enough news, information, movies and documentaries.  I am often dumbfounded by which shows most people find themselves preoccupied.  Many of the most popular shows which most Americans watch, I almost never have viewed.    I think there are others just like me.  

Think about it, because I know that when I often talk to people at work or elsewhere these days, we don't necessarily have the same point of reference.  This is the new American society, where it seems that there is less of a common cultural base than what was before.  I believe this also has a larger social implication in our society, such as in politics and other social values.

And how about Radio.   It's leaning towards a similar predisposition