The Only Way Is Essex preview

Charlotte Rowe There not chavs and i would love to live in Essex with them. They are amazing and have brains since most of them have successful businesses and make loads of money! I can't wait too see the next series woooo! GO ESSEX!

no not 'chavs' as you put it, but they are the media's representation of 'reality television.'

Their interests revolve around the seven deadly sins of 'pride, avarice, envy, wrath, lust, gluttony, and sloth' attributes they encourage us the viewer to admire. Why? Money.

We're becoming a nation of 'wanna be's' who shop for pleasure enforcing a culture of want, rather than need. This is an amoral culture that cares nothing for anything other than money itself.

We have a lifestyle and consumer media, of which MSN is a part that reinforces these values and is changing culture and society in a deeply troubling way. TOWIE truly represent the worst human beings in the world, and have become a beacon of un-heroic heroes, living vapid lives that will leave nothing behind for future generations.

Don't be confused by this, they are not something to aspire too, there is no talent here for anything other than thriving in a wholly material existence.

Success, as defined by our culture and conveyed through reality TV--wealth and fame, most notably--is so revered, yet, in the reality in which most of us live, so utterly unattainable. We get the message from reality TV that we must become successful at any cost, even if success can be achieved only by dishonesty and subterfuge. The unfortunate results of these messages can be found throughout our culture. We see increased cheating in schools, the use of performance-enhancin​g drugs in sports, and criminal behaviour in our youth and, among our adult population, lying on resumes, frivolous law suits, and corporate greed and goverment.

Anything to become a success! Reality TV obviously doesn't cause such behaviour, rather that it is just another symptom of the decline of values that used to limit this behaviour. And reality TV is now an omnipresent conduit through which these truly atrocious messages are communicated to us all . And if you think these message are fundamentally benign, think again. The more people are exposed to any message, even terrible ones, the more likely they will be accepted as the norm. There is no 'off' button' outside your front door and the wider community in which you live.

If you feel I'm being a little extreme than I'd ask you at least to question whether you may have become accustomed to life being this way, and would urge you to stop and think about the consequences of this form of entertainment.

In a generation we have gone from fully accepting that certain types of behaviour are wrong too simply accepting it as part of the norm, in fact worse it is reinforced by modern popular television and media culture.

Ultimately it is our children that will deal with the consequences of this distorted moral view of life, Ask yourself are these the sort of people and values you wish them too see as something to aspire too? Is this the only way we can prosper?