What ‘The Bachelor’ shares with Nunberg
A willingness to be on TV doesn’t mean someone deserves our attention
On Monday, long-fired Trump associate Sam Nunberg appeared on news show after show, despite growing concern that he wasn’t in a good place. On Monday and Tuesday, millions tuned into the season ending of The Bachelor, watching Arie Luyendyk end his engagement with one woman and propose to another, even as revelations from a new book show how much Bachelor staffers manipulate contestants.
It’s time for a new mindset: Just because people agree to go on TV doesn’t mean we should allow them to — or watch them.
Let’s look at the Nunberg case. The former Trump aide went on several shows and talked to other outlets, including The Washington Post and Politico. He first said he wouldn’t comply with special counsel Robert Mueller’s subpoena and then changed his mind. Nunberg, who has been fired three times by Donald Trump and was later sued by Trump, told MSNBC about the alleged Russia collusion: “I think that (Trump) may have done something during the election, but I don’t know that for sure.”
Unnamed friends told The Daily Beast that “they were worried Nunberg had been drinking prior to dialing in to MSNBC and CNN.” CNN’s Erin Burnett asked whether Nunberg had been drinking, citing how he smelled. Nunberg answered that he was just on antidepressants. MSNBC’s Ari Melber asked Nunberg about stress: “How are you holding up, and do you want to take more time to think this through? Could you change your mind?”
Unfortunately, the number of top shows and outlets Nunberg was able to appear on or be quoted by, almost instantaneously, suggests that the news media put ratings success over any concern for Nunberg’s well-being. Sure, he might have said something that made news (although the fact that he hasn’t worked for Trump since August 2015 doesn’t make him the best informed figure), but if that was the goal the media could have held or taped his interviews, then released them after talking to him again when he seemed to be in a less manic mode.
Nunberg wasn’t the only figure illserved by TV cameras this week.
Bachelor Nation, a book released Tuesday, provides revelations about just how fake The Bachelor is — and how little the show cares for the wellbeing of its contestants. A Bachelor contract literally included the clause, “I understand, acknowledge and agree that producer … may portray me in a false light.” So much for this being a “reality” show.
Author Amy Kaufman reported that producers tracked female contestants’ periods and planned interviews around them. “It helped the producers, because now you’ve got someone who is emotional — and all you want is emotion,” one former producer told her. Bachelor veteran Chris Bukowski compared the interviews to prison interrogation: “I was saying lines verbatim from producers because I’d been sitting in a stupid room for an hour and just wanted to go,” adding that “you would say something you totally didn’t even believe or want to say.” Oh, and of course, Bachelor staff made sure contestants had easy and frequent access to alcohol.
Talk about puncturing the fairy tale. Far from being a show about men or women finding the love of their life, The Bachelor seems to be a twisted look at manufactured drama — and one that encourages men and women to be their worst, not best, selves.
I’ve watched The Bachelor and The Bachelorette, and I found myself checking Twitter on Monday for the latest updates on what Nunberg said. I get the interest.
But when I also think about how I’d feel if Nunberg or Bachelor contestants were my friends, I realize it no longer seems so funny.
There’s no doubt that watching drama can be compelling — and cathartic. But let’s stick to the fictional type, not let TV executives nudge us into the kind of voyeurism that corrupts viewers and participants alike.