‘Jersey Shore’ season 6: Hurricane Sandy causes dip in the ratings

While the ratings for many shows were down across the board over the past week in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, one of the things that we were most curious to see was just what sort of impact the massive storm was going to have on the ratings for “Jersey Shore” season 6. Why? Not only is the show filmed in the now-devastated Seaside Heights, but is more popular in the region than in most other places around the country since there is such a strong local connection.

Sadly, the news is not really very good. For the hour-long episode Thursday “Jersey Shore” pulled a 1.4 rating in the 18-49 demographic, which is nearly a fourth of what the show was pulling at its peak just a year and a half ago. Granted, it did face some more competition this time in the CMA Awards, new episodes of network TV, and of course blackouts caused by Sandy, but the number is still far from a knockout considering how much these cast members are getting paid.

While we expect the actual city of Seaside Heights to recover from this devastation over time, we are not quite sure that “Jersey Shore” itself will do the same. The storylines this season have paled in comparison to the early season, and Snooki has especially been a dud given that her pregnancy has changed the entire tone of the show. These people are growing up, and save for Deena Cortese most of them do not seem nearly as interested in pulling some of the same sort of antics that they once were.

Do you think that the “Jersey Shore” ratings went down due to Sandy, or is this more indicative of just a general lack of interest?