It seemed all good in the hood when former Bacheloretteleads Kaitlyn Bristowe and Andi Dorfman joined their mutual runner-up Nick Viall during an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel to promote Nick’s season of The Bachelor. The thought of this made me feel awkward given Kaitlyn and Nick’s history, but also because of Kaitlyn’s rocky history with the Bachelor franchise. Kaitlyn infamously spoiled her own Bachelorette season when she accidentally posted a photo with her in bed with her winner/fiance Shawn Booth. So I was pretty surprised when she was back in the fold promoting The Bachelor. Well, that was short-lived since Kaitlyn ranted on Twitter about Nick getting the opportunity to be on Dancing With the Stars.
The last lead from the franchise to appear on DWTSwas Chris Soules and many people credit the demise of his Bachelor engagement with Whitney Bischoff to being on Dancing With the Stars. And many past Bachelor leads have warned their successors from following in their foot steps since the show is rough for a new relationship. So it wasn’t super surprising when the last three series leads did not go on to the ballroom. Well, apparently there’s more to that.
ABC crushed my trashy TV loving heart when Bachelor Pad was canceled last summer. I mean, the only reason to watch Bachelor and Bachelorette, which are both beyond stale, the past several years was to anticipate who will end up on the sleaze fest called Bachelor Pad.
On Friday, ABC shared its plan to launch a new Bachelor spinoff, Bachelor in Paradise, this summer. Paradise?!? Like Love in the Wild or Paradise Hotel or Temptation Island? I'm listening, ABC…
The racial discrimination lawsuit against theBachelor and Bachelorette has been dismissed by a judge. Christopher Johnson and Nathaniel Claybrooks claimed racial discrimination after they auditioned for the show in April. As a result, they filed a class action lawsuit against ABC, Warner Horizon Television, Next Entertainment, NZK Productions, and creator Mike Fleiss.
Christopher and Nathaniel drew attention to the fact that neither show has ever featured a person of color and the majority of contestants vying for roses have been white. The pair's lawyers argued that the producers of the Bachelor needed to respect the Civil Rights Act and other anti-discrimination laws. In addition, Christopher and Nathaniel wished to force the Bachelor to have persons of color as finalists.
Judge Aleta Traugerruled in favor of ABC and granted their motion to dismiss the lawsuit.
"The Shows' casting decisions are part and parcel of the Shows' creative content, which the plaintiffs seek to reform. That is plainly an attempt to regulate the content of the Shows, which the First Amendment forbids," Judge Trauger ruled. "In this respect, casting and the resulting work of entertainment are inseparable and must both be protected to ensure that the producers' freedom of speech is not abridged."
Yesterday a class action lawsuit was filed against ABC andThe Bachelor by Nathaniel Claybrooks and Christopher Johnson, two Africa-American men who claim they were discriminated against at a recent Bachelor casting event. A photo of the two men is above.
“This is a case about equal opportunity,” said Cyrus Mehri, who is one of the lawyers representing the plaintiffs. “It’s about putting everyone on equal footing. We’re not saying that these two men should definitely have been selected. This is saying that they should have been given the same level of consideration as white applicants.” According to the LA Times, both men say, upon their arrival at a 2011 casting call they were treated with disrespect and largely ignored while white counterparts were treated completely differently.
Nathaniel Claybrooks, a small business owner, alleges his on-camera interview was much shorter than the ones given to white applicants and he was not given the same opportunities. Christopher Johnson says after handing in his application, he was unable to proceed past the lobby into the main interview room while white applicants were ushered right through by casting officials.
Both men claim rejection has nothing to do with their suit, but an effort to change the process and bring awareness to blatant discrimination. It’s worth adding that in fifteen seasons of The Bachelor, there has never been a bachelor of a different ethnic background. Nor has there been a Bachelorette of a different ethnicity. Now I’m not saying that’s intentional on the show’s part, but it is worth investigating. Show creator Mike Fleiss joked about this in an interview, saying former Bachelorette Ashely Hebert may have been 1/16th Cherokee.
The plaintiffs are seeking unspecified damages. “But basically, this is about the need for reform,” their lawyer explains. ABC declined to comment on the recent suit.
Discussing the suit are two former Bachelor contestants. “It is clearly not right that after 10 years of successive seasons there hasn’t been a black Bachelor or Bachelorette, especially when we have a black president,” Matt Grant, star of The Bachelor, Season 12 told RadarOnline.
“As one of the longest running reality shows on TV, The Bachelor is a national brand, a part of American pop culture and part of the make-up of the country,” Matt continued “It should definitely be more racially diverse because it is not reflecting the demographic of the nation right now.” Matt adds that during his season, London Calling, there was only one African-American woman competing to be his wife – and he claims he brought up the lack of diversity with producers!
“While I don’t think any of the producers are inherently racist,” he added, “I just think that mistakes are being made.” Matt believes the contestants are merely chosen to reflect the primary viewership. “The real reason for it I think is because most of the viewers are from the middle of the country and are predominantly white. Which leads to the moral question, ‘Should The Bachelor cast reflect the viewing demographic or the real national demographic?’” This Matt is pretty smart isn’t he? He needed television to find a wife?
“If you have more black people involved in the show then maybe more black people would watch,” said Matt added.
Also speaking out, is former Bachelor and Bachelor Padnut contestant, Elizabeth Kitt. “The cast was predominantly white,” she tells RadarOnline. “I didn’t hear any racist slurs during filming so to say the show is racist is going too far, if you throw that out there too many times it is the boy who cried wolf.”
Elizabeth seems to think the lawsuit is baseless and believes it’s simply a case of more white people applying to be on the show, a sentiment Mike Fleiss has also echoed. “I’m a little annoyed by the lawsuit, if you want to be on the show – then apply!”
[Photo Credit: LA Times]
DO THE PLAINTIFFS HAVE A POINT? IS THE BACHELOR INTENTIONALLY CASTING WHITE CONTESTANTS OR IS IT MERELY A COINCIDENCE? DOES THE BACHELOR NEED TO DIVERSIFY?
It seems the most homogeneous dating pool in America will soon get a wake-up call! Shortly after Lamar Hurdstarted a campaign to become the first black Bachelor in the franchise history, two other African-American men have decided to file a class action lawsuit against the show for discrimination!
According to TMZ, the two plaintiffs attended a casting call in a Nashville Hotel to audition to be the next Bachelor. Christopher Johnson, one of those men—who also happens to be an aspiring NFL player—claims when he arrived the producers asked him why he was there.
Apparently, that’s when the discrimination began. Christopher and another African-American applicant, Nathaniel Claybrooks, claim they were then taken to the side of the room and excluded from the normal audition process. Neither man received a call back and both believe it is because of their race!
In response, they have filed a class action lawsuit today in federal court against ABC, Warner Horizon Television, Next Entertainment, NZK Productions and creator Mike Fleiss. More details will be coming this afternoon and Reality Tea will keep you posted on the developments.
In other news, Ben Flajnik and Courtney Robertson continue their campaign to convince people they are in love. Hey, getting married following The Bachelor comes with a hefty reward – lifetime infamy! And likely some monetary pay-offs as well.
According to HollywoodLife, the couple is madly in love and will be walking down the aisle sooner than we think! “Courtney and Ben are getting married! They have totally rekindled their feelings for each other on an even deeper level,” Courtney’s friend reveals. “The drama that happened after the show actually brought them closer together and they both realized that they didn’t want to lose each other. Courtney has even been looking at wedding dresses.”
Indeed, the two were spotted at Mark Zunino’s recent wedding dress fashion show – which of course totally proves this wedding is happening, like tomorrow, and not that the couple is pretending to be in love for fame and publicity as some reports have claimed.
“They sat in the front row and were holding hands the entire time,” Courtney a friend reveals to HollywoodLife. “They looked really happy and very much in love. During the show, Ben played with Courtney’s hair and she was giggling and pointing to the different wedding dresses.” Apparently, when and if she weds, Courtney will be sporting a Mark Zunino gown. Ok, then.
And finally, with Emily Maynard‘s season of The Bachelorette premiering next month, ABC has released the first glimpse of her portrait. PEOPLE got the exclusive. Emily looks stunning, of course, and is obviously holding a bunch of roses! The portrait is below!
The Bachelorette premieres May 14th at 8:30/9:30 EST on ABC.
IS THE LAWSUIT AGAINST ABC AND THE BACHELOR VALID? DOES THE SHOW DISCRIMINATE? WILL COURTNEY & BEN GET MARRIED – OR ARE THEY IN LOVE WITH PUBLICITY?
CLICK THE CONTINUE READING BUTTON FOR EMILY’S PORTRAIT!
According to a report, past Bachelorand Bachelorettecontestants have had it with the show’s super strict rules and are not taking it any more!
The coalition or planned class action lawsuit rather is being led by Jesse Csincsak, winner of the Bachelorette season 4 with Deanna Pappas.
In an interview with CupidsPulse.com, Jesse reveals he and other show contestants have spoken to attorneys and are in discussion to file the lawsuit against the show’s creators Mike Fleiss and Elan Gale.
“Once you’re on the show, they own you,” Jesse said. ”Even when your contract is up, they still interfere in your life and prevent you from promoting other brands and making money.”
Jesse, who does a lot of interviews/blogs posts about the shows and even hosts Bachelor(ette) events, reveals the last straw for him came when Gale contacted his business partners and other companies telling them not to work with him. Jesse adds that the producers have also contacted former other show contestants threatening to blacklist them if they participate in any of his events.
Jesse, who is now married to former Bachelor contestant Ann Lueders, explains how the planned class action lawsuit came about. “I had planned to file my own lawsuit last month but after discussions with numerous people and former Bachelor contestants, we realized that this issue is much bigger than me,” he said.
And in a separate interview with Star magazine earlier this month, the former pro skateboarder referred to Fleiss as a bully. “He thinks he owns me and can keep me from making money. I just want to feed my family,” said Jesse, adding: “I want Fleiss to treat me like he wants to be treated… if he wants me to leave him alone, he needs to leave me alone.”
Yikes, this is certain to get ugly. It, however, appears Jesse and others have a real shot at winning this case as back in 2003, the show’s producers sued former Bachelor Season 4 star, Bob Guiney, accusing him of violating his contract by promoting his cd and music video. Bob ended up winning that case.
It was also reported last month that the show filed a lawsuit against Steve Carbone, who operates the site RealitySteve.com, known for revealing pretty accurate spoilers about the show. The lawsuit alleged Steve was offering contestants financial incentives to break their show contracts.
[Photo Credit: Judy Eddy/WENN.com]
TELL US – THOUGHTS ON THIS PLANNED CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT? SHOULD THE CONTESTANTS BE ALLOWED TO MAKE A LIVING OFF THE SHOW AFTER THEIR SEASONS END?
Former Jon & Kate Plus 8 dad Jon Gosselin is currently on his fourth girlfriend since leaving his ex-wife Kate Gosselin less than a year ago.
And while the world continues to wonder how the douchebag father of eight does it, Jon is gushing about his new girlfriend, Ellen Ross, in a new interview with UsWeekly.
“We just kind of hit it off, backyard barbecues in Pennsylvania, hanging out, good times,” he said of Ellen whom he met on a blind date. “She knew of me and all that stuff [and still] saw me as a normal person.” The relationship is “really different for me,” he added. “It’s like a comfort zone.”
And when it comes to his relationship with ex-wife Kate, Jon shares the two mostly keep their brief conversations about the kids. “We talk about: ‘Hey, I’m going to be there at 2 p.m. to pick up the kids. Is there gas in the van? Good,'” he explained. “That kind of thing.”
So what does the jobless dad wish to do career wise? “It would be nice to have a job on television again,” he told UsMagazine “I’m not so sure about reality. I’m just exploring my options right now, meeting with certain people about different ideas. I can’t talk about it; you have to stay tuned.”
In other news, the web was buzzing this week with news that Kate Gosselin might be getting her own dating reality show ala The Bachelorette.
First an “insider” said the following to Life&Style magazine. “Kate’s working on a deal to do a new reality dating series on ABC,” said the insider. “Kate would love to have someone in her life. She really misses the companionship. She wishes she had a man around to help her out.” The rumors then grew legs when the Bachelor/Bachelorette creator Mike Fleiss toldRyan Seacrest that Kate could indeed be the next Bachelorette.
Kate’s people however shut down the rumors, telling EOnline.com that the reports she scored her own dating show on ABC — pairing her with single dads — is “not true.” Hmm, something tells us if the price is right, we will be seeing Kate on the next season of the Bachelorette.
The show’s producer, Mike Fleiss, had previously confirmed the next Bachelor would be one of the contestants from Jillian Harris‘s recent Bachelorette season, even narrowing the choices down to three men. “When the new season of The Bachelor premieres, look for Reid, Kiptyn or Jake to be handing out the red roses,” said Fleiss.
There are however rumblings that the new Bachelor could be a new contestant all together. Our previous polls showed a preference for Reid as the next Bachelor.
The new season of “The Bachelor” will premiere in early 2010; with all signs pointing to Monday, Jan. 4, though the actual premier date has yet to be confirmed.
