It was the year reality TV finally died. Ha ... just kidding.
For every person who fervently wished for reality's demise, there were millions who slavishly tuned in. If anything, 2004 proved that the genre, while it may not always be as hot as today, has staying power.
"American Idol" remained reality's powerhouse, although between victorious Fantasia Barrino and young Diana DeGarmo didn't quite garner the bloody fan battles that Clay Aiken and Ruben Studdard did. (Clay's millions of fans, dubbed Claymates, rival only European soccer fans in devotion.)
and proved that viewers seemingly can handle more than one season of a show per year, although "Survivor All-Stars" didn't do as well as expected.
Speaking of "The Apprentice," in the show's boardroom prompted readers to ask: "How much of this stuff is actually real?" LA Times columnist Joel Stein revealed the scandalous truth when he for an episode of "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy."
Apprentice-wannabes popped up through the year. Mark Cuban's and Richard Branson's however, showed that it takes more than a really rich guy and a camera to turn a successful show.
Celebrity-driven reality, including Jessica Simpson's "Newlyweds" and Paris Hilton's "Simple Life," continued to draw tabloid headlines, but their Nielsen ratings pale compared to competition shows like "Survivor" and "Idol." And steadily chugging along were reality shows by the dozens that rarely make the headlines, from the joyous births on TLC's "A Baby Story" to the belligerent would-be travelers on A&E's "Airline."
The shows may not be completely real, they may not be always Emmy-winning, but if Donald Trump can survive , the reality-TV genre can survive a few bumps in the road. Right now, it's not going away anytime soon.