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    Can You Match These Basic Cable Reality Shows To Their Networks?

    It is not nearly as easy as it may seem. Pretty much every basic cable channel wants its own wedding show, tattoo show, crazy food show, and wealthy "working" professional show.

    When the glorious notion of 500 channels on cable television was first introduced to the world 20 or so years ago, the underlying promise was that there would be a specific channel for every possible demographic niche.

    The reality has been rather different. These days, many basic cable channels rush to get their version of a popular programming trope on the air — wedding planning, tattoo parlors, crazy food, real estate, wealthy "working" professionals, etc. — no matter how far afield that trope strays from the channel's seeming charter. The result: It almost doesn't matter what channel you're watching at all.

    It is true that I could be turning into a fusty crank clinging to the days when the words "Travel Channel" and "History Channel" meant you'd be watching a show about travel and history. But as you take this quiz testing your ability to match the reality TV show with its corresponding channel, please take a moment to contemplate how we've all allowed our television landscape to drift into total chaos.