Whether or not the show Catfish is something you look forward to every Monday or something you scoff at when it is the only thing on TV, it is hard to argue that the show is not attention-grabbing and fascinating.
Nev Schulman, a victim of catfishing, and his friend Max Joseph pursue their goal of assisting people all over the country of meeting their online love interests. Some of the people featured on the show have been dating an online personality without so much as a phone call or Skype date in years.
At this point, some viewers may ask themselves "Really? How do you believe someone exists if they can't Skype or if they don't have a phone?" and say that the show has no point. I on the other hand might as well be super glued to my chair. The most fascinating parts of the show, besides the ultimate reveal, are the defensive attitudes of many of the online lovers who turn out to be complete liars.
Catfishing has social relevance that spans past the popularity of dating sites and fake Facebook profiles. University of Notre Dame football player and Heisman Trophy runner-up Manti T'eo is claiming to be a victim of catfishing himself. T'eo claims that the girl he dated online for years that had died at the start of the football season was actually a male acquaintance of his.
Even if Catifsh is not your favorite Monday night program, there is no doubt that this phenomenon is real, mind-blowing and intensely complicated.
Charlotte Lewis can be reached at charlotte.lewis@student.shu. edu
