Racial bias over 'The Bachelor'

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This morning I see on Yahoo that two black men are suing "The Bachelor" for racial bias. Now I'm not a fan of the show, but I know of it and know plenty of people who watch it.

Every season the show (and by show I am including the Bachelor and the Bachelorette) features an attractive person and a whole bunch of contestants who are trying to marry him/her. The star has always been a white person. The contestants have always been of mixed races. Since the star doesn't want to appear racist (my opinion) the minorities always survive at least one and sometimes two rounds, but they never get close to the final.

Now I'm curious as to how this will play out. The show obviously is trying to get ratings as high as possible. They have obviously figured out that their demographic is primarily white people and have built their show around attracting white viewers. Is this racist and is it discrimination? For the sake of racial harmony and discrimination laws do they actually have to design a show that will not do as well in the ratings and therefore not make as much money as possible? If BET were to make a "Black Bachelor" would that be considered OK? Should the NBA and NFL also have quotos?

Personally, I think they should be able to design the show that they want to. I consider media a far different thing then having a restaurant that was "white only".

 

I don't know. Clearly, the fact that these two particular African Americans weren't selected for the lead role in no way shows that there was racial bias. From the limited experience I have with the show, it appears that both the main character and contestants have to be attractive, successful, and well spoken. From the limited information I have, I have no idea if either of these people met those qualifications. To me, they might have been "rushed through" the interview process as they say not because they were black, but because they didn't meet the standards that the show wants from its bachelor(ette)s that have nothing to do with what your racial background is.

I also have no idea how long these shows have been running, but it has been a number of years. So it does seem to me to be somewhat odd that there hasn't been anyone other than a white person in the lead role, as there have been at least a dozen or so such characters. But THAT doesn't prove there was racial bias either.

And even if ABC would prefer the lead character to be white, I don't think you can sue them for that either, unless they prohibited other people from applying for the position. AFAIK, ABC is owned by Disney, and their first obligation is to produce shows that get the best ratings, and to make their shareholders money. So if putting a white person in the lead role is the best way to accomplish that, I don't really see it as bias as much as I see it as good business sense.

 

That is what I'm curious as to how the courts will decide. Does business sense get trumped by racial sensitivity?

 

And the other thing is that they are only talking about the lead role. As I understand it, they do have people of other races among the "contestants" for lack of a better term. The way I see it, I'm sure there's more than a few companies out there that have never had anyone other than a white person as the CEO. It would be quite another thing if there was no one in a management position in the entire company who wasn't white. So I think as long as you allowing people of varying races on the show - even if not as a lead role - it's not racial bias.

 

Just a bunch of nonsense. The show is crap, as all reality TV is, and it'll be next to impossible to prove any damages. These guys have nothing better to do than take this to court? I wish I had the $ to waste on frivolous legal actions.

 

Legal questions are generally not so much a question of law anymore (IMO) as simply a battle of resources, which is why rich people can often get away with murder. The Bachelor is a successful Hollywood enterprise so they probably have a battalion of attorneys at their disposal so they will probably win.

This tendency even informs legal proceedings from their inception, particularly in civil matters. The question before proceeding is usually not "does this have merit?" but "is there a reasonable chance we'll win?" Thus you can have legitimate cases that go nowhere because there is little chance of success (targeting too resourceful an entity with too little evidence, or a not resourceful enough entity even if you have tons of evidence, etc.) and illegitimate cases that do go places for the opposite reasons.

 

^1+

 

The only kind of women who would be impressed by suing the bachelor would be gold diggers. It seems to me that these guys have the type of personality where after a week on the show the women would be asking to leave.

That said, I am a white male between 18-25 and have never experienced any kind of racism or prejudice against me, so I won't even try to pretend like I know what this kind of situation actually feels like.

Still, I'm a firm believer that people are too quick to sue about things that upset them. Frankly, I don't give a crap if somebody doesn't like me, if they hate me because of who I am or what I represent, any of that junk. There's enough hate in the world, people need to relax.

 

I still can't figure out if that show is real or not. The contestant dialogue just seems way too scripted and neat when compared to other shows, and some of the dramas seem way too convenient and way too much like a soap opera. Either the whole show is as fake (and entertaining) as pro wrestling, or they choose their contestants very very cleverly.

 

I saw some kind of Aussie version of this theme a few years back (do not know why I watched it enough to notice what I noticed). Some tough outback guy was to choose between a bunch of silly city girls. Fully half the girls were "ethnic" of one kind or another and it was striking how he voted out the darker girls first until all he was left with were pale blonde women. I only saw bits and pieces of a season but I noticed how the "bachelor ethnically cleansed" among the women until he could choose between women of a kind he liked. Do not know if this is grounds for a lawsuit or not but it was damn obvious.

 

Is he not allowed to choose whomever he likes, based on whatever criteria is meaningful to him? Maybe he's not attracted to dark-skinned women. Besides, I thought we weren't supposed to see skin color. e.g., aren't they just a bunch of girls, not half 'ethnic' and half 'regular?'

At any rate, if the day ever comes when we're required to have individual racial quotas for dating partners, I'm dropping out.

 

Exactly! I am not physically attracted to women with certain physical characteristics. That doesn't mean I am out to kill them, it just means I don't want to get up close and personal with those women. I'll chat with them, sit in church with them, work alongside them, and serve them in whatever workplace capacity I am currently employed, but I am most certainly NOT REQUIRED to be attracted to them.

More stupidity from the Equality Police.

 

The show has been running for 10 years now. Out of the 23 Bachelors/ettes, none have been of any race but white. I think this does in fact demonstrate a clear problem.THis racialisciious article touches some of the issues around the whole thing.

 

Just to be clear - they aren't suing due to who the Bachelor(ette) is voting off the show. It's about the Bachelor(ette) him(her)self - the person who is doing the choosing. They are suing because the person selecting who stays and goes is always white. It has nothing to do with who the person picks to stay and go on the show - it's about selecting someone who isn't white to be the Bachelor(ette).

 

Yeah - that response was to joa's post.

 

I put no value in my post, it was merely an observation. This guy was ruthlessly and without any concern of being "pc" voting off anyone with even the smallest drop of non-European blood. Probably cause it was not to his liking. I just thought it was noteworthy seeing as things usually are a bit at least "pc".