You hear that?  That is the sound of 7.023 billion people heaving a sighing of relief.  "Finally!" we all said in exasperated unison.  "Finally."

Unfortunately, this conclusion is based on speculation on the part of The Daily Mail rather than any hard proof.  However, the numbers given are convincing:  "Sunday's episode reached an all-time low of only 1.7m viewers, which is half of what the reality series was getting in its heyday of 2009 and far less than the 4.1m viewers that tuned in just after Kim Kardashian tied the knot with Kris Humphries."

The Mail also sites growing scandals, the conspicuous absence of Kim Kardashian, and increasing speculation about the "reality" of the ever-present reality show as reasons for the possible ratings decline.

For comparison's sake, the article noted:

The 1.7m number is disturbing because so many other TV shows have been doing incredibly well lately.

Breaking Bad saw over 10m viewers and The Big Bang Theory gets just north of 20m viewers.

So.  Now that the reign of the Kardashians might finally be coming to an end, can we bring back Paris Hilton to reality TV?  I miss The Simple Life.