By Chris Cosci

In this age of reality television, it's ironic how much we're losing touch with reality. Everything that happens in real life is being turned into entertainment. It's bad enough that our lives used to seem dull and unexciting compared to the lives of movie and television characters. Now we're seeing how dull and unexciting our lives seem compared to other real people's lives.

Of course, what we see on television is not necessarily "reality." The people are real, but they're acting under staged, unnatural circumstances. Most reality programming involves normal (and I use that word very loosely), everyday people like you and me. Then there's celebrity reality programming -- shows that focus on the real life events of celebrities (again, I use that word very loosely).

Now we are entering a new age of reality television -- an age where true reality and TV reality merge into a jaw-dropping display that nearly obliterates the fine line between what's real and what's not. Nowhere is this more evident than in the coverage of the Michael Jackson trial. If you haven't heard anything about this trial, then your complete and utter disconnect with the world around you makes me simultaneously pity you and envy you.

It's pretty frightening to think that this story is getting almost as much around-the-clock news coverage as our recent presidential election. Still, celebrity trials have long been a source of entertainment for the general public. From the infamous, high profile O.J. Simpson murder trial to the less glamorous Winona Ryder theft trial, people are fascinated by the proceedings. With those trials, we were treated to a good old-fashioned media circus.

In this case, cameras have been banned from the courtroom, denying us from sitting down with a bucket of popcorn and watching the proceedings. With reality television being all the rage, we needed a solution. Enter basic cable channel E!, which has hired actors to perform daily reenactments of the Michael Jackson court proceedings. After each session is adjourned, producers take the transcript from this real criminal court case and turn it into a television show. Not only does the trial become a performance, but E! edits out all the boring "evidence" and "testimony" and gives us 60 minutes of pure excitement. And just like that, we completely lose whatever grip on reality we had left.

By airing these reenactments, the serious business of a real trial, involving real lives, real laws and real criminal acts is turned into a stage show. Instead of seeing defendants and witnesses, we're seeing actors. Instead of hearing testimony, we're listening to a script. Instead of feeling that justice is being carried out, we feel like we're watching just another episode of Law & Order.

I think people tend to forget that trials are not meant to be entertainment. Yes, the defendant is a celebrity and some of the witnesses will also be celebrities. However, when the trial is over, the people involved won't just collect their paychecks and go home to start looking over new scripts. Legal fees will be paid. Paperwork will be processed. There will be a verdict. There may be sentencing. The judgment may be appealed. While the end of the trial may bring more pain and heartache to the parties involved, television viewers will see it as only a series finale. The show is over -- time to change the channel and see what else is on. ("Ooh, I wonder who the Bachelorette is going to pick tonight!")

Where do we go from here? Could we possibly blur the line any further? How long will it be before we turn every court case into a game show? Lawyers will compete in a debating game, earning points for strong arguments and valid testimony. Both teams will rack up bonus points by introducing alibis and key witnesses. At the end of the "trial," the team with the most points will enter the final round, where they can spin the Wheel of Justice to determine the sentencing. Honestly, I better stop now before I give some television producer any more ideas.