The Real World, shown on MTV, was one of the very first popular reality shows, and has been running for 25 seasons now.  That is a long lifespan for any show let alone a reality t.v. show.  So how do you spice things up when almost every other reality show features the fake lives of desperate 20-somethings?  You throw in a gay-porn star.  Dustin Zito, the 24 year old gay-for-pay “actor”, has been recruited by MTV to be in the next season of The Real World.  He performs on the porn site Fratmen.com as “Spencer”.  The trailer for the upcoming season shows Rayne, a girl from La., saying “You got taped having sex. It’s all over the Internet,” after asking Zito if there is anything he wanted to tell her.  Girl please, is that the best you could come up with?  Just come out and say “You f*** dudes for a living.” Make it believable!!!

If you’re feeling the crunch of these tough economic times and looking for a way to supplement your income, allow us to suggest a career as a reality TV socialite. The hours are lousy, and the skyscrapping stilettos you’ll have to prance around in will likely result in a permanent case of hammertoe, but we’ve got a feeling you’re going to like the perks.

Just ask Kim Kardashian and her sisters Kourtney and Khloe.

The ubiquitous Kardashian sisters were among the top-earning reality TV stars in a new year-end list of rankings, The Daily Beast said Monday.

Kim led the list with over $6 million in reported earnings. The men’s mag pinup and star of E!’s Keeping Up With the Kardashians hawks products ranging from timepieces to tennis shoes, but interestingly enough, the bulk of Kim’s fortune is amassed from take of the Dash Boutiques, a trendy chain of designer retail stores with locations in Los Angeles, Miami, and now Manhattan. Kim owns the business with sibs Kourtney and Khloe. The sisters just released a new book, Kardashian Konfidential, that sold 13,000 copies in its first week of release. The girls even boast beauty endorsement deals with Sephora and Bebe.

Former Hiller Lauren Conrad followed in a close second place. The Laguna Beach alum earned an estimated $5 million in 2010. LC made bank by producing a successful clothing and accessories line for Kohl’s department stores and publishing two young adult books and a style guide. Lauren’s literary works have sold over a million copies.

Top 10 Top-Earning Reality TV Stars:

1.) Kim Kardashian ($6 million)

2.) Lauren Conrad ($5 million)

3.) Bethanny Frankel ($4 million)

4.) Audrina Patridge ($3.5 million)

5.) Kate Gosselin ($3.5 million)

6.) Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino ($2.8 million)

7.) Khloe Kardashian ($2.5 million)

8.) Kourtney Kardashian ($2.5 million)

9.) Paul “Pauly D” DelVecchio ($1.5 million)

10.) Kendra Wilkinson ($ 1.5 million)

Oprah Winfrey has teamed up with Survivor producer Mark Burnett to launch a new program that will give an undiscovered chatterbox a chance to follow in her talk show footsteps with a daily series on her new cable network.

The series, Your OWN Show: Oprah’s Search for the Next TV Star, will begin airing in January on OWN, Winfrey’s cable television station, The Associated Press said Monday.

The Queen of Talk will walk away from The Oprah Winfrey Show  in September 2011 after 25 seasons. She’s hoping to pass the torch to an aspiring chatshow host.

Contestants are invited toupload videos to Oprah.com under categories like traditional talk show, cooking, health and wellness, and interior design. It’s possible to also watch and vote on submitted videos. In-person casting calls are scheduled for later this month in cities like Atlanta, Dallas, and Orange County, California.

In a phone interview with The AP from Los Angeles on Monday, Burnett – who is also the brainchild behind Donald Trump’s The Apprentice – said the premise of the new series fits perfectly into what viewers like to watch: Regular people achieving extraordinary things.

“The landscape and acceptance of ordinary people on television is widely accepted … Much in the way American Idol finds unknown people (to be recording stars) there’s no reason we can’t find someone who deserves their own show.” Burnett advises OWN Show hopefuls. “Donald Trump gave me the greatest advice with The Apprentice: Find Peoplewith the greatest energy source … you’ll be hard-pressed to show me someone who has their own show on TV who is not energetic and who has charisma.”

“Try to be authentically yourself. Show energy,”

The producers of American Idol want to know what you think of the show this season. The FOX talent series is conducting an online survey to get feedback from viewers. It includes questions like these:

-Are you watching the show more or less than you used to and why.
-Do you like Ellen Degeneres as a judge?
-Do you miss Paula Abdul as a judge?

CLICK HERE To Take The Survey….

In news that will send fans of MTV’s breakout reality smash Jersey Shore screaming their well-gelled heads off we hear that the entire cast of the debauchery-lovin’ docusoap will be replaced for the forthcoming third season. Doron Ofir, casting director for the hit MTV show and the brainchild behind other reality hits like A Shot At Love with Tila Tequila and the upcoming Friggin’ Weddings, confirmed the news in a scoop to Blackbook Magazine on Tuesday.

According to reports, the decision came after castmates-turned-pop culture stars Snooki, The Situation, J Woww, Pauly D, Sammi, and Ronnie demanded a pay raise to return to the Shore for a third season. A move that infuriated MTV chiefs. The self professed guidos and guidettes were already being paid $10,000 per episode for Jersey Shore Season 2 (which premieres July 29).

Apparently, they wanted more.

Jersey Shore became the highest-rated reality soap in MTV history last winter after eight twentysomethings were plucked from obscurity and cast to spend a summer of drunken party in the Garden State resort town of Seaside Heights.

MTV has not commented on the casting change.

Eurythmics singer Annie Lennox has hit out at TV talent shows – branding the contests “dangerous and cruel” because of the devastating effect rejection can have on aspiring artists.

Lennox — who spends her days as an outspoken HIV/AIDS activist — tells The Daily Mail she would never join the judging panel of a series such as American Idol or Britain’s The X Factor .

“I think those types of shows are dangerous and cruel – they’ll have a long-lasting effect on how people look at music. I understand their appeal, but there’s no chance I’d ever be a judge. You have a panel of people basically giving you the thumbs up or down, and there’s so much more to music than that.”

howard stern to judge american idol?

We’re one step closer to finding a successor to Simon Cowell, and according to reports, it’s looking more and more like 6-foot-5 shock jock Howard Stern may take the seat. On his Sirius satellite radio program on Monday, Stern told listeners that he’s seriously considering leaving radio entirely to take the “Idol” gig. “There’s not a better job on the planet than judging that … karaoke contest,” he said.

Surprising? Absolutely. Not just because Stern might abandon the medium that’s made him a millionaire several times over, but what’s even harder to grasp is that he may leave his beloved New York City!

So how would Stern do out here in Cali? And could his unfiltered, often brutal honesty actually work on America’s most popular show? What do you think?

And then there were three: Despite having former champ Derek Hough as her professional partner, swimsuit model and Playboy centerfold Joanna Krupa was booted from the ninth season of Dancing With the Stars on Tuesday night.

“It’s been such an amazing experience,” said Krupa, who finished second all to season frontrunner Mya after Monday night’s graceful Viennese waltz. “Thank you to the judges. I’ve grown as a person and thank you for giving me the opportunity. I had a great partner.”

Derek offered a final words on Twitter.

“Thank you everyone for your support .. Amazing season .. I saw it coming, but couldn’t be more proud and happy with how this season went,” he wrote.

Krupa was eliminated just one week shy of the Season 9 finale, which will see Kelly Osbourne and Louis Van Amstel compete against Donny Osmond and Kym Johnson, and Mya and Dmitry Chaplin next week.