tag:theconversation.com,2011:/ca/topics/the-bachelorette-21027/articlesThe Bachelorette – The Conversation2023-01-12T19:16:22Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1974142023-01-12T19:16:22Z2023-01-12T19:16:22ZFrom Bachelor to The Bachelors – why Australia’s longest running dating show has updated the old formula<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/504143/original/file-20230112-52660-mub602.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C1078%2C606&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">10 Play</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>This week marks the beginning of the tenth season of The Bachelor Australia, Australia’s longest running reality romance franchise. </p>
<p>Often, anniversaries like this provoke nostalgia, a desire to look back at what’s gone before, and to return to a format’s roots. But despite a montage of Bachelor history at the beginning of Monday’s premiere, this is not the approach this new season has taken. </p>
<p>Rather, as it is at pains to remind us repeatedly, it has thrown most of its conventional structures and trappings away. The French-chateau-inspired Sydney mansion is out, replaced by a modern one on the Gold Coast. The fairy lights and candles are conspicuously absent. </p>
<p>And in the most obvious change, instead of having only one man at its centre, there are three: Jed McIntosh, Felix Van Hofe, and Thomas Malucelli. The Bachelor has become The Bachelors.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/504142/original/file-20230112-32622-gdowx7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/504142/original/file-20230112-32622-gdowx7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/504142/original/file-20230112-32622-gdowx7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/504142/original/file-20230112-32622-gdowx7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/504142/original/file-20230112-32622-gdowx7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/504142/original/file-20230112-32622-gdowx7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/504142/original/file-20230112-32622-gdowx7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/504142/original/file-20230112-32622-gdowx7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">The three bachelors of The Bachelors: Jed McIntosh, Thomas Malucelli, and Felix Van Hofe.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">10 Play</span></span>
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<h2>Commitment and choice: innovating with the format</h2>
<p>While the parent Bachelor franchise in the US has remained relatively consistent over the 20 years it has been running, the Australian franchise has been far more open to experimentation. (One might even speculate that it is used to trial innovations that might then be adopted in the extremely popular American version.)</p>
<p>Brooke Blurton’s groundbreaking 2021 season of <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-first-bisexual-bachelorette-and-the-messy-history-of-bisexual-representation-on-reality-tv-170362">The Bachelorette Australia</a>, which featured both male and female contestants, was an excellent example of this. Blurton was both the first First Nations and the first openly queer person to ever lead a Bachelor/ette season anywhere in the world. </p>
<p>In Blurton’s season, innovation was based on inclusion. This is not the case in The Bachelors Australia, in which the vast majority of the cast appear to be heterosexual and white (a step backwards, in a franchise which has enormous problems around diversity, nationally and internationally). </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-first-bisexual-bachelorette-and-the-messy-history-of-bisexual-representation-on-reality-tv-170362">The first bisexual Bachelorette and the messy history of bisexual representation on reality TV</a>
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<p>In the latest season, the innovation is with the underlying structures and mechanics of the franchise, creating new opportunities for the people participating in the show – and new storytelling possibilities for the people making it. </p>
<p>Rather than meeting their contestants upon their entrance to the Bachelor mansion like usual, the three Bachelors travelled around Australia, going on short blind dates with numerous women and inviting only the ten they liked best onto the show. While each of the thirty women is nominally dating the Bachelor who brought them, they are openly encouraged to explore the possibility of a relationship with any of the three men: as host Osher Günsberg tells them, they should “go on all the rides at the theme park before they find the one they’re going to stay on all day”.</p>
<p>This ties into a new rhetoric of choice. While contestants have always been able to refuse a Bachelor’s rose, the multiple-Bachelor format allows them options beyond leaving, giving them more power within the show’s structure.</p>
<p>The other major shift is in the show’s new approach to its endgame. While season-ending proposals are de rigueur in the American franchise, they have historically been rare in the Australian one (with the exception of Blake Garvey’s proposal to Sam Frost in 2014, which ultimately led to one of the franchise’s shortest-lived relationships). </p>
<p>In The Bachelors, this is not the case. All three Bachelors have been given engagement rings – with the expectation, one imagines, that they will use them. </p>
<p>Within the show, the rings are used as a visible symbol of the Bachelors’ commitment <em>to</em> commitment. The world of modern dating is presented as an environment where it is impossible to find a partner who will commit it to you. The show, then, becomes the solution.</p>
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<h2>A naked ratings grab?</h2>
<p>These changes have clearly been made in response to viewer fatigue, and in an attempt to revive the <a href="https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/tv/reality-tv/the-bachelor/the-bachelors-premiere-struggles-in-the-ratings-after-format-reboot/news-story/f6198a11830a632e792f2110c3e7c0da">show’s ratings</a>, which have been in decline for some years (although it is worth noting that this has perhaps been overstated: overnight Nielsen ratings do not include streaming, where, for example, Blurton’s season performed quite well, especially for a younger demographic).</p>
<p>The Bachelor is a remarkably long-running reality romance format, both in Australia (where it has run since 2013) and overseas (the US version has run since 2002). For a long time, it was the only format to run for more than a few consecutive years.</p>
<p>However, in the 2010s, this began to change, with the local and global rise of formats like Love Island and Married at First Sight. </p>
<p>The influence of both is plain to see in this new iteration. The emphasis on contestant choice is reminiscent of Love Island, where participants are frequently encouraged to “recouple”. So too, arguably, is the new fluorescent lighting and bright colour palette.</p>
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<p>And the emphasis on commitment, and on the show as the supposed solution to the toils of modern dating, is clearly drawn from <a href="https://theconversation.com/married-at-first-sight-a-social-experiment-all-but-guaranteeing-relationship-failure-114070">Married at First Sight</a>, in which the titular “expert”-arranged marriages are positioned as a way to guarantee a dedicated and compatible partner willing to work on a relationship, rather than one who will simply ghost or give up.</p>
<p>Similarly, this new iteration seems designed to encourage conflict – something in which Married at First Sight notoriously specialises.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/married-at-first-sight-a-social-experiment-all-but-guaranteeing-relationship-failure-114070">Married at First Sight - a 'social experiment' all but guaranteeing relationship failure</a>
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<p>Whether or not this new version of The Bachelor Australia saves it from cancellation remains to be seen. The fact that it is being aired in January over a much shorter period than normal seems to suggest that the network does not have much faith in it. </p>
<p>However, it offers something new for old viewers who might have been experiencing fatigue; and something familiar for new viewers, who might be better acquainted with some of these other reality romance formats. </p>
<p>While The Bachelors has its flaws, its first week of episodes certainly did not lack entertainment value.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/197414/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jodi is the author of Here For The Right Reasons and Can I Steal You For A Second?, two novels set on a reality romance show. </span></em></p>The new season of the Bachelor franchise has changed the formula, in a bid to combat audience fatigue and dropping ratings.Jodi McAlister, Senior Lecturer in Writing, Literature and Culture, Deakin UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1703622021-10-26T19:15:02Z2021-10-26T19:15:02ZThe first bisexual Bachelorette and the messy history of bisexual representation on reality TV<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/428364/original/file-20211025-13-1llnaj9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=45%2C61%2C740%2C375&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Network 10</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Reality TV staple The Bachelor, and its various franchises, has been described as a “primetime harem fantasy” even though it ultimately presents a fairly conservative portrait of romance. </p>
<p>In its latest iteration, <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-05-20/brooke-blurton-becomes-first-indigenous-bisexual-bachelorette/100151510">The Bachelorette Australia</a> (Network 10 2021) is attempting to offer something refreshingly different through <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2021/oct/21/bachelorette-australias-first-brooke-blurton-episode-is-a-triumph-i-finally-have-my-church-back">the casting of Brooke Blurton</a>, a First Nations bisexual woman. Such casting necessitates a first for the franchise — casting both male and female contestants to vie for Blurton’s affections.</p>
<p>Having both male and female suitors was sold as a groundbreaking moment of representation. One contestant even says “we’re doing so much for our community” in the second episode. Is this indeed the case? The volume and quality of representation we have seen of LGBTIQ+ individuals, characters and communities has undoubtedly improved, though it is still rare enough for each one to be notable. </p>
<p>Of course, the stereotypes and issues surrounding representing bisexuality are different from, say, those surrounding gay men. And it is well established by decades of research that<a href="https://scholars.org/contribution/how-media-has-helped-change-public-views-about-lesbian-and-gay-people"> television representation plays a role in informing attitudes towards LGBTIQ+ individuals</a>. </p>
<h2>The long and reductive history of bisexual representation on television</h2>
<p>The Bachelorette is not the first series to present a bisexual individual on the small screen. 1990s bisexual representation on television was largely made up of ratings boosting kisses between a major female character and a non-recurring female character. In these cases, the major character’s interest in women was generally never mentioned again (think <a href="https://www.out.com/entertainment/2017/9/05/20-years-later-ally-mcbeals-queer-legalese-doesnt-always-go-down-easy">Ally McBeal</a>, Picket Fences and even <a href="https://ew.com/article/2001/04/27/why-friends-lesbian-kiss-was-lame-stunt/">Friends</a>). It was generally seen as a titillating or scandalous storyline, but not one that took representation or sexuality seriously.</p>
<p>Later on, series like Queer as Folk or The L Word, <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/shannonkeating/l-word-generation-q-showtime-tales-of-the-city-lesbian">tended to characterise male bisexuality as simply a stopover on the way to gayness</a>, with male bisexuals depicted as closeted or lying to themselves.</p>
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<p>Neither of these positions take bisexuality particularly seriously as an identity. In the last few years we have seen two really positive representations emerge in the form of <a href="https://www.vulture.com/2018/05/stephanie-beatriz-bisexual-awakening-on-screen-and-off.html">Rosa Diaz on Brooklyn 99</a> and <a href="https://fashionmagazine.com/flare/dan-levy-on-playing-pansexual-on-schitts-creek/">David Schitt on Schitt’s Creek</a>. Both of these characters built meaningful relationships with both men and women over the course of their seasons. And neither of them were defined purely by their sexuality.</p>
<p>In terms of reality dating television, as could perhaps be expected, representation of bisexuality has tended to emphasise sex. The casting of bisexual contestants can be seen to add an extra set of dimensions and complications. A recent example can be found in season 8 of MTV reality dating show Are You The One? (MTV 2019), which cast 16 male and female contestants who all identified as sexually fluid. </p>
<p>Perhaps the earliest reality dating series to feature both male and female contestants vying for a bisexual (female) lead was <a href="https://www.thestranger.com/slog/2020/05/29/43778180/a-shot-at-love-with-tila-tequila-is-unstreamable">A Shot at Love With Tila Tequila</a> (2007) and its 2008 sequel. In these series both male and female contestants were placed onto teams to compete for Tequila, who rose to fame as the <a href="https://www.digitaltrends.com/social-media/how-social-media-created-and-destroyed-tila-tequila/">most popular person on MySpace</a>. The game structure even leveraged one woman and one man into the finale for Tequila to pick between. This emphasises the unfortunately common perception that bisexuals need to “pick a team”, and furthermore, that audiences should feel personally invested in what “team” that might be.</p>
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<span class="caption">A Shot At Love With Tila Tequila used bisexuality as a reality TV device.</span>
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<p>The structure of reality dating shows with their emphasis on contest and conflict, tend to result in narratives that attempt to grab ratings with (often sexually charged) interactions between contestants. The issue with this is that it falls into a context of associating bisexuality with hypersexuality.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/is-the-bachelor-anti-feminist-or-is-conventional-heterosexual-romance-the-real-problem-81748">Is The Bachelor anti-feminist, or is conventional heterosexual romance the real problem?</a>
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<h2>Brooke Blurton and bisexuality in 2021</h2>
<p>The charming Brooke Blurton on The Bachelorette is characterised very differently from Tila Tequila. A statement from her, edited near the beginning of the premiere, asserts that she is interested in connections with individuals, rather than their gender. Thus eliminating the idea of there being a “team” for her to choose.</p>
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<p>There are signs, however, that the series is setting up a men vs women narrative regardless of this. The first episode sees the male and female contestants grouped in separate gazebos, and multiple comments are edited in that highlight the various insecurities about having more than one gender in the mix. Blurton herself is also presented on multiple occasions making comparisons between the “boys” and the “girls”. </p>
<p>Certainly conventional perceptions around gender are still held by contestants and casting, such as surprise about the women being romantically “bold”, and the casting of only very stereotypically feminine women as suitors (in contrast, a fan favourite and finalist in Tila Tequila’s show was a relatively butch lesbian firefighter).</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/if-you-are-the-one-and-the-bachelor-know-how-to-get-to-us-we-all-fear-dying-alone-49053">If You Are The One and The Bachelor know how to get to us: we all fear dying alone</a>
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<p>Osher Günsberg, The Bachelorette Australia’s host, is certainly self-congratulatory in his opening dialogue, asserting that Blurton’s presence on the show is a groundbreaking moment of representation. It is, however, hard not to see all this as a strategic move to attract younger viewers on the part of a franchise with rapidly dwindling ratings, that is struggling to compete with more contemporary series. The 2021 The Bachelor Australia, for example, <a href="https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/tv/reality-tv/the-bachelor/the-bachelor-2021-winner-announcement-airs-to-lowest-finale-ratings-ever/news-story/5727cc4965ad8c0b9a2381cba7c702c4">was its lowest rating season</a>, with the finale only attracting half the viewers of previous seasons. </p>
<p>Casting diversity appears to be a key part of this strategy. In the US in 2020 this has meant the 25th bachelor was the <a href="https://time.com/5926330/the-bachelor-diversity-matt-james/">first ever Black bachelor</a>. In Australia, Blurton is not only the first bisexual woman in the Bachelorette role, but also the first First Nations woman to appear on a major reality dating franchise. It is her sexuality, however, that offers the most change in terms of the actual “gameplay” of the series.</p>
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<p>While scripted series have managed to create complex portraits of bisexual desire, the broad brush strokes of reality dating series are probably still a way off being able to imagine a world where gender is not an “issue” of dating.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/170362/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rebecca Beirne does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The new season of The Bachelorette Australia is making some historic firsts in the franchise when it comes to on-screen bisexual representation.Rebecca Beirne, Senior Lecturer in Film, Media and Cultural Studies, University of NewcastleLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/854642017-10-25T04:51:53Z2017-10-25T04:51:53ZHanging out with the boys: how bromance often steals the spotlight in The Bachelorette<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/190091/original/file-20171013-31446-13aaypt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Bachelorette Sophie Monk with this year's contestants.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://tenplay.com.au/channel-ten/the-bachelorette/photos/best-of-week-1#15">Channel Ten</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The celebrated Australian trait of mateship is very much on display in the third season of Channel 10’s The Bachelorette. But this is not always to the benefit of the protoganist, Bachelorette Sophie Monk. </p>
<p>This emphasis on male bonds can be seen in the parting words of two bachelors. Professional polo player Bingham Fitz-Henry’s concern about leaving the show had little to do with missing out on time with Monk:</p>
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<p>I’m enjoying my time hanging out with the boys and the experience I’m having is second to none and if it was to end now I’d be devastated.</p>
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<p>Another departing bachelor, restaurant manager Harry Farran, also spoke gushingly of his new-found male companions:</p>
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<p>These group of guys have become my friends over the last few weeks and I honestly believe that you will fall in love cause I have.</p>
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<p>While it is gratifying that male friendship is alive and well, such examples of “bromance” sit awkwardly alongside the show’s defining narrative of heterosexual romance. Conceived originally as a bond between men, mateship’s traditional exclusion of women potentially undermines their desire and identity. </p>
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<p><em><strong>Further reading:</strong> <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-the-bachelor-turns-women-into-misogynists-62423">How The Bachelor turns women into misogynists</a></em> </p>
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<p>A glimpse of this was seen in the relationship between Bachelorette contestants Sam Cochrane, a voice over artist, and Blake Colman, an entrepreneur, whose mutual affection led to each pledging support for the other in winning the game. The glaring question of Monk’s desire was irrelevant.</p>
<p>The Bachelorette might appear to be a progressive alternative to <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-the-bachelor-turns-women-into-misogynists-62423">The Bachelor</a>, but it is actually doing nothing for women when male bonds are central to its drama. And there is a dark side to mateship that popular television shows such as this tend to gloss over.</p>
<h2>Mateship’s darkness</h2>
<p>The significance of mateship in Australian culture can in part be attributed to Russell Ward’s influential <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/05/16/1052885396799.html">The Australian Legend</a>, which identifies it as a great social equaliser and defining national trait. The cultural embrace of mateship has continued into the modern era, such as when John Howard <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/national/mateship-secular-australias-religion-and-how-john-howard-hijacked-it-20141217-129c7t.html">tried unsuccessfully</a> to include the term in a new preamble to the Australian Constitution.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/190093/original/file-20171013-31414-1ae4s4n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/190093/original/file-20171013-31414-1ae4s4n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/190093/original/file-20171013-31414-1ae4s4n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/190093/original/file-20171013-31414-1ae4s4n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/190093/original/file-20171013-31414-1ae4s4n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/190093/original/file-20171013-31414-1ae4s4n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/190093/original/file-20171013-31414-1ae4s4n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">The Australian version of The Bachelorette emphasises bonds between its male contestants.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://tenplay.com.au/channel-ten/the-bachelorette/photos/best-of-week-4#4">Channel Ten</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>However, mateship has not always fostered equality between all. This is deftly dramatised in a number of classic Australian films where women in particular experience it as a negative social force.</p>
<p>For example, Bruce Beresford’s cinematic adaption of the David Williamson play <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074422/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1">Don’s Party</a> (1976) depicts drunken larrikins bonding at an election night party, to the general detriment of their female companions. Neil Rattingan’s book <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6844770-images-of-australia">Images of Australia</a> suggests that rather than “promoting a sense of bonding and community”, the film highlights a hostile social system where barely concealed feelings of “envy, jealousy, and aggression” underlie the surface humour.</p>
<p>The undervalued Australian film <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093952/?ref_=fn_tt_tt_4">Shame</a> (1988), starring Deborra-Lee Furness, foregrounds another ominous dimension of mateship. Here, a male ocker-style pack mentality leaves young women endangered and ultimately violated.</p>
<p>But nowhere has the dark side of mateship been better explored than in <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0067541/?ref_=nv_sr_1">Wake in Fright</a>, Ted Kotcheff’s devastating 1971 film adaptation of the Kenneth Cook novella. A new version of Wake in Fright recently screened on Channel 10 as a <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt6660456/?ref_=nv_sr_2">miniseries</a>. While the TV series covers aspects of the film, it fails to rediscover the dark power of Kotcheff’s original.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/190094/original/file-20171013-31422-17o0zpx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/190094/original/file-20171013-31422-17o0zpx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=906&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/190094/original/file-20171013-31422-17o0zpx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=906&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/190094/original/file-20171013-31422-17o0zpx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=906&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/190094/original/file-20171013-31422-17o0zpx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1139&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/190094/original/file-20171013-31422-17o0zpx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1139&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/190094/original/file-20171013-31422-17o0zpx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1139&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Wake in Fright (1971).</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0067541/mediaviewer/rm1673856512">IMDB</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>It is interesting that it took the vision of a British author (Cook) and Canadian director (Kotcheff) to successfully expose mateship’s malevolent character, including continual scenes of debauchery, excessive drinking, heedless gambling and bloody roo-hunting expeditions. After appearing in Kotcheff’s film, Jack Thompson admitted that the depiction of mateship was “<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/07/movies/wake-in-fright-and-australian-new-wave.html?smid=tw-nytimesmovies&seid=auto&_r=3&">embarrassingly accurate</a>”.</p>
<p>The only woman of any note in Wake in Fright, Janette Hynes (Sylvia Kay), is reduced to being a “good sheila” who cooks, serves alcohol and provides the men with a point of sexual arousal. The incorporation of more female characters into the 2017 television remake only downplayed the original story’s disturbing chronicle of chauvinism. </p>
<h2>Exclusive club</h2>
<p>Gender studies theorist <a href="http://evekosofskysedgwick.net/biography/biography.html">Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick</a> has argued that <a href="http://thowe.pbworks.com/f/sedgwick.between.men0001.pdf">male bonds</a> are developed through women’s exclusion. Although American, her ideas resonate perhaps even more in an Australian context, where white, male heterosexual bonding has also traditionally excluded non-white and non-heterosexual men.</p>
<p>As I have argued previously, while the Bachelorette and Bachelor both promote competition, the conflict between the women in The Bachelor far outstrips men’s rivalry in The Bachelorette. In the 2016 season of The Bachelor, the personal nature of the women’s clashes was at times sexist and even in some cases misogynistic. </p>
<p>The very different dynamic going on in the male and female versions of this reality TV franchise should give us pause to reflect upon whether this mirrors real life relationships between men and women. In a show that is supposedly about Sophie Monk’s quest for love, bromance often steals the spotlight.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/85464/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Suzie Gibson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The Bachelorette might appear to be a progressive alternative to The Bachelor, but it is actually doing nothing for women when male bonds are central to its drama.Suzie Gibson, Senior Lecturer in English Literature, Charles Sturt UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/817482017-08-16T03:32:42Z2017-08-16T03:32:42ZIs The Bachelor anti-feminist, or is conventional heterosexual romance the real problem?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/181501/original/file-20170809-26064-830wxp.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Matty J, the current Bachelor in the Australian version of the franchise, prepares to reward one of his suitors with a rose.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Network 10/Warner Bros. International Television Production</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The Bachelor attracts widespread criticism for being old-fashioned, <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-the-bachelor-turns-women-into-misogynists-62423">anti-feminist</a>, and <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/comment/ill-be-tuning-in-to-the-bachelor-but-im-not-proud-of-it-20170725-gxi4s7.html">humiliating to women</a>.</p>
<p>The show involves a group of women competing for the attention of “the bachelor” — the single male star. He offers a rose to those who win his affections, enabling them to stay in the competition.</p>
<p>Is this courtship ritual old-fashioned and outdated? Or does it accurately reflect modern, mainstream norms around heterosexual romance? </p>
<h2>Will you accept this rose?</h2>
<p>Everyday norms surrounding heterosexual dating and relationships dictate clear gender roles, with distinct expectations <a href="https://theconversation.com/do-women-take-their-husbands-surname-after-marriage-because-of-biology-56991">for men and women</a>. </p>
<p>On the dating scene, men are generally expected to approach women, and to invite women on a date. When a man “takes” a woman out to dinner he will typically offer to pay for the meal. </p>
<p>In relationships, when the man decides the time is right for marriage, he presents the woman with a ring and asks her to marry him. If he is especially true to tradition, the bride-to-be’s father is asked for permission before she is. Conventional weddings are <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1469540514521076">as fashionable as ever</a>, and there is no shortage of ostentatious marriage proposals by men that are <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zVVnLnhZbO8">shared online</a>.</p>
<p>This pattern of male leadership and female passivity in heterosexual romance is woven into the formula on The Bachelor. He makes the first moves, while the women wait passively for attention, dates, and a rose. </p>
<p>The show is criticised on feminist grounds. But is waiting for a rose appreciably different to waiting for a marriage proposal? </p>
<p>However, unlike any typical real-life situation, The Bachelor pits multiple women against one another to win the approval of just one man. But even when you subtract this competitive group element, the man is still in control if it is up to him to decide when to make a move – whether that means giving a rose, asking for a date, or asking for a hand in marriage. </p>
<p>The core problem of male decision-making and power remains even when there aren’t multiple women competing for him. Ordinary heterosexual dating is really just a rose ceremony for one. </p>
<h2>Girls behaving badly</h2>
<p>Despite norms dictating female passivity in heterosexual romance, we do sometimes see behaviour that violates these expectations on The Bachelor. Occasionally, a female contestant assertively approaches the bachelor and pulls him away for one-on-one time. Sometimes the women behave competitively with one another through direct and indirect verbal attacks.</p>
<p>Such competitive behaviour is sometimes construed as women being “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/nov/18/women-own-worst-enemies-study">their own worst enemies</a>”. An alarmingly common inference from such assessments is that women are somehow to blame for the discrimination and disadvantages they experience because of patriarchy.</p>
<p>If anything, this competitiveness is counter-stereotypical behaviour for women, given that men are typically seen as being in competition for women, who are considered the “choosier” sex. And yet, it is the violation of such feminine norms that is often viewed with the most derision. </p>
<p>Men, on the other hand, are rarely accused of being “their own worst enemies” when they compete for women. Nor are their conflicts so frequently and readily condemned as a flaw of their gender.</p>
<h2>What about The Bachelorette?</h2>
<p>The gender-reversed scenario on The Bachelorette demonstrates that the rules of the game can go either way, as far as gender is concerned. But does this role-reversal disempower men in the same way that The Bachelor supposedly disempowers women?</p>
<p>First, the unconventional situation in The Bachelorette is unlikely to elicit conventional behaviour from the male contestants, since the situation is so unlike reality. Forcing males into a more passive role is always recognised as simply a brief suspension of conventional norms.</p>
<p>In fact, The Bachelorette is recognised as a subversion of traditional gender roles. This temporary role-reversal has an inherently different meaning, given that it occurs in a broader social context that is far more consistent to the situation in The Bachelor. </p>
<p>In this sense, we never truly reverse the roles, because it occurs within a context where conventional gender roles remain. </p>
<p>Once the show is over, the contestants return to ordinary norms, where men take the lead. Knowing this, any passivity or powerlessness that men might experience as contestants on The Bachelorette isn’t going to have the same impact, nor continue once they leave the house. </p>
<p>If anything, this reversal perhaps highlights the differences in the qualities that men and women tend to prefer in a partner. <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.82.6.947">Research suggests</a> that, among heterosexuals, women are more likely to prefer male partners with status and resources. Men, however, place much higher value on physical attractiveness in their female partners.</p>
<p>If women feel that The Bachelor trivialises them and overemphasises their appearance, it’s probably because that’s what the bachelor is looking for. The Bachelor and The Bachelorette might just reflect differences in men’s and women’s mate preferences, and why these reverse scenarios aren’t really the same.</p>
<h2>What reality TV teaches us</h2>
<p>While the rules of The Bachelor can easily be reversed to be The Bachelorette, we don’t see the same consequences for men and women in this role-reversal.</p>
<p>Perhaps it is for the same reason that real-life dating and marriage norms seem so resistant to change. It’s easy to be critical of traditional gender norms when they play out in an artificial setting, but in real life, traditions are held sacred. </p>
<p>If we are serious about gender equality then we need to be more critical of the norms and institutions that <a href="https://theconversation.com/its-not-just-the-toy-aisles-that-teach-children-about-gender-stereotypes-59005">encourage female passivity</a> in the first place. The Bachelor simply highlights the problematic ways that women might be disadvantaged by conventional gender norms around romance and relationships.</p>
<p>Perhaps it’s not the rules of this reality TV show that’s the problem, but rather the gender rules of reality that play out within it.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/81748/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Beatrice Alba does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A pattern of male leadership and female passivity in heterosexual romance is woven into the formula on the popular TV show The Bachelor.Beatrice Alba, Assistant Lecturer, Monash UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/624232016-08-17T20:27:43Z2016-08-17T20:27:43ZHow The Bachelor turns women into misogynists<p>Channel Ten is currently screening Australia’s fourth series of the reality TV program <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4158012/">The Bachelor</a> (2013-), a franchise imported and adapted from the US. The show seems a guilty pleasure for its mostly female audience, who live vicariously through contestants vying for the attention of Bachelor Richie Strahan.</p>
<p>Audiences are encouraged to embrace “traditional” romance narratives (overlooking same sex or bisexual relationships). But what’s most disturbing about The Bachelor is the way it drives women to undermine one another. </p>
<p>Unlike a Cinderella or a Snow White fairy tale, the romance isn’t limited to two lovers of the opposite sex, but manifests in a bevy of perfectly sculpted women battling for the affections of a single man. This is heterosexual love as virtual blood sport.</p>
<p>Housing numerous women within a mansion, plying them extensively with alcohol and asking them to fight over one man does not bode well for female friendship. The math alone equals trouble. This female rivalry illustrates a challenging fact: sexism is not determined by one’s gender. Women can be just as sexist as men. And under certain conditions, they can be worse.</p>
<p>The designated “villain” of the series, 29-year-old account manager Kiera Maguire, provides what producers are looking for as she gushes forth disparaging comments about her fellow contestants. Unfortunately, in providing this kind of entertainment she enacts a form of sexism that might be termed “<a href="http://www.salon.com/2016/04/08/the_mystery_of_republican_women_backing_sexist_trump_theyre_female_misogynists_whove_grown_to_accept_oppression/">female misogyny</a>”. </p>
<p>However, perhaps her antics reveal more about the show’s creators, who engineer confrontation, prompt contestants for soundbites and edit together artificial conflict.</p>
<p>Maguire has reportedly said that The Bachelor has <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-3740537/Keira-Maguire-reveals-deep-regret-appearing-Bachelor-cult-upbringing-revealed.html">ruined her life</a>, with the leaking to the media of information about her childhood in a polygamous cult. This kind of exposure isn’t accidental – it’s the job of producers to drum up as much publicity as possible.</p>
<p>Producers have extraordinary power. This is vividly examined in the American drama <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3314218/">UnReal</a> (2015), based on Sarah Gertrude Shapiro’s <a href="http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2016/06/20/sarah-gertrude-shapiro-the-savagely-clever-feminist-behind-unreal">experience of being a US Bachelor producer</a>. The program follows producer Rachel Goldberg (Shiri Appleby) as shes goes to astonishing (and unethical) lengths in manipulating contestants to manufacture drama. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/134236/original/image-20160816-13007-1o9lvtx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/134236/original/image-20160816-13007-1o9lvtx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/134236/original/image-20160816-13007-1o9lvtx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/134236/original/image-20160816-13007-1o9lvtx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/134236/original/image-20160816-13007-1o9lvtx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/134236/original/image-20160816-13007-1o9lvtx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/134236/original/image-20160816-13007-1o9lvtx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/134236/original/image-20160816-13007-1o9lvtx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">B.J. Britt and Kim Matula in UnReal (2015)</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Lifetime</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Narratives like The Bachelor give prominence to women, but push them to devalue one another on the basis of their looks, or lack of acceptably “feminine” behaviour. </p>
<p>This dynamic of women enacting patriarchal values has powered some classic films: Mike Nichol’s <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096463/">Working Girl</a> (1988) with ruthless business woman (played by Sigourney Weaver) cruelly undermining her underling (Melanie Griffith), or cult movie <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097493/">Heathers</a> (1988), whose lethal characterisation of bitchiness influenced <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0377092/">Mean Girls</a> (2004).</p>
<p>Variations on this theme of catty female rivalry has inspired many television programs, such as the popular <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1578873/">Pretty Little Liars</a> series (2010-present).</p>
<p>The current series of the Bachelor dramatises far more aggressive conflicts than previous seasons. Provoking competitive nastiness amongst women is a <a href="http://www.tvtonight.com.au/2016/08/bachelor-tops-demos-nine-wins-primary-channel.html">winning ratings strategy</a>. </p>
<p>Tellingly, in the first episode of this year’s Bachelor (aired on July 27) 24 year old Melbourne-based artist Georgia Tripos likens her fellow contestants to a “pack of hyenas”, asserting that she’s “seen this behaviour before, but in primary school.” </p>
<p>Illustrating this point is 31 year old support worker Rachael Gouvignon, who undercut Maguire’s moment of triumph by describing her as a “wicked witch” after she won a date with the Bachelor and was gifted a beautiful Cinderalla-like gown to wear on the occasion. </p>
<p>The insult “witch” has long been a criticism of powerful women – Bronwyn Bishop and Sophie Mirabella famously standing in front of “ditch the witch” placards during Gillard’s time as PM indicate that Tony Abbott was not alone in his “alleged” misogyny. </p>
<p>The Bachelor’s meticulously organised group dates are designed to pit each woman against the other. In a more recent episode (aired on August 11) the conflict did not disappoint. </p>
<p>Even good-natured contestants can produce insulting sounds bites, such as 26 year old hairdresser Faith Williams, who described Maguire as a “duck dressed up as a kangaroo” when the latter pouted about being coerced into wearing an absurd kangaroo outfit. </p>
<p>Judging women by their looks alone buys into a sexist and reductive value system. Ariel Levy’s important book <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18745.Female_Chauvinist_Pigs">Female Chauvinist Pigs: Women and the Rise of Raunch Culture</a> (2005) considers how women’s objectification of one another <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/18/books/review/female-chauvinist-pigs-girls-gone-wild.html?_r=0">enacts sexist behaviour</a>. The competitive desire to be the sexiest woman in the room (or in the case of The Bachelor, the mansion) might win the admiration of the single man, but women undermine themselves by trying to fulfil chauvinistic fantasies. </p>
<p>Undoubtedly, men can be just as competitive and this was made abundantly clear in last year’s Australian premiere of <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt5068750/">The Bachelorette</a> (where the gender ratio is reversed). However the rivalry was diffused by the program’s focus on its heroine’s emotions, Sam Frost. (The year before Frost won the 2014 season of the Bachelor, but was subsequently <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/celebrity/ls-celebrity-news/the-bachelors-sam-frost-reveals-exactly-how-she-was-dumped-by-blake-garvey-20141222-12cm9r.html">publicly dumped by Bachelor Blake Garvey</a>. She then went on to star in her own season of the Bachelorette.)</p>
<p>The tone of the conflict in The Bachelorette is very different from The Bachelor and in part this is because much of the screen time was devoted to Frost’s feelings. But more disturbingly, the nature of the competition was far less demeaning. The heady cocktail of spite that is onscreen right now sharply contrasts with that sense of camaraderie developed by the men in The Bachelorette.</p>
<p>The unedifying spectacle of women psychologically tearing each other apart indicates that misogyny is not an exclusively masculine domain. </p>
<hr>
<p><em>Suzie Gibson will be online for an Author Q&A between 2 and 3pm on Thursday, 18 August, 2016. Post any questions you have in the comments below.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/62423/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Suzie Gibson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The Bachelor, like most reality TV, thrives on drama. But its particular style of conflict illustrates an uncomfortable point: women can easily be sexist against other women.Suzie Gibson, Senior Lecturer in English Literature, Charles Sturt UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/577022016-06-06T01:21:19Z2016-06-06T01:21:19ZObsessed with reality TV? You may be a narcissist<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/124670/original/image-20160531-1943-ote2h8.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Donald Trump in the boardroom during an episode of 'The Apprentice.'</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Nick Lehr/The Conversation</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>In early May, with Donald Trump on the verge of solidifying the Republican nomination, his opponent Ted Cruz ranted to the press: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>I’m going to tell you what I really think of Donald Trump. This man is a pathological liar. He cannot tell the truth, but he combines it with being a narcissist… A narcissist at a level I don’t think this country has ever seen.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Journalists and psychiatrists have agreed with his characterization of Trump. He’s been called “<a href="http://www.vanityfair.com/news/2015/11/donald-trump-narcissism-therapists">remarkably narcissistic</a>,” “<a href="http://www.vanityfair.com/news/2015/11/donald-trump-narcissism-therapists">a textbook case of Narcissistic Personality Disorder</a>” and even “<a href="http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/apr/15/donald-trump-friends-family-staff-inner-circle-whos-who">a total narcissist … who will be the destruction of the United States</a>.”</p>
<p>The rise of Trump has surprised many. But it shouldn’t surprise those who are familiar with personality trends over the last several decades. </p>
<p>When we think someone’s a narcissist, there’s a chance they have <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-dark-side-work/201409/healthy-self-esteem-versus-healthy-narcissism">subclinical narcissism</a> – the technical term for a personality trait characterized by grandiosity, entitlement, envy, a tendency to exploit others and a preoccupation with fame and success. It’s not considered pathological, like the more serious and clinically diagnosable <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/conditions/narcissistic-personality-disorder">Narcissistic Personality Disorder</a> (NPD). But it’s disconcerting nonetheless. (People who do develop NPD almost always have the subclinical narcissism trait.) </p>
<p>In 2008, psychologists were able to show that scores on the Narcissistic Personality Inventory, which measures subclinical narcissism, have been <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1467-6494.2008.00507.x/full">steadily increasing</a> in the United States since the 1970s.</p>
<p>A year later, two popular books, “<a href="http://www.narcissismepidemic.com/">The Narcissism Epidemic</a>” and “<a href="https://www.harpercollins.com/9780061582332/the-mirror-effect">The Mirror Effect</a>,” analyzed the phenomenon, floating potential reasons for the rise of narcissism in America. They both concluded that the rapid growth and reach of entertainment media and celebrity culture shared much of the blame.</p>
<p>However, neither of those books tested this claim, so we recently <a href="http://psycnet.apa.org/psycarticles/2016-07841-001.pdf">conducted a study on television viewing habits</a> that was designed to do just that.</p>
<h2>How college students responded</h2>
<p>We were interested in three particular questions:</p>
<ul>
<li>Is narcissism related to television exposure?</li>
<li>Are preferences for specific television genres related to narcissism?</li>
<li>Are narcissism trends continuing?</li>
</ul>
<p>For the study, we administered a survey to 565 college students. We asked them to complete several questionnaires, with questions that included how much television they watch and their preferred genres, in addition to the Narcissistic Personality Inventory (NPI). Participants selected which of a pair of statements best describes them. Each pair contained one narcissistic and one non-narcissistic answer, with an individual’s score determined by the total number of narcissistic options selected.</p>
<p>By comparing results from our sample, taken in 2012, with a hypothetical 2006 sample constructed from a <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/files/attachments/4330/npitimeupdatespps.pdf">prior meta-analysis of narcissism research</a>, we found that our sample of college students had an average NPI score approximately 1.5 points higher. This evidence suggests that narcissism among college students is continuing to increase. </p>
<p>We also found that people who watched more television were more likely to score higher on the NPI. However, once we accounted for genre, this correlation diminished and a different one emerged. </p>
<p>Regardless of how <em>much</em> TV they watched, people who liked political talk shows, reality shows, sporting events and horror shows tended to score higher on the NPI. But those who preferred news broadcasts – even if they watched a lot of TV – usually had lower scores on the NPI. </p>
<p>Taken together, these results suggest that there is a relationship between television exposure and narcissism. Furthermore, the type of show one prefers is more influential than the amount of TV watched. </p>
<h2>A model to mimic</h2>
<p>On the surface, these results make sense. Take horror shows: the villains often exhibit narcissistic personality traits as they profess their grand plans for destruction or domination. </p>
<p>Meanwhile, political talk shows (“The O'Reilly Factor,” “Real Time with Bill Maher”), sporting events and, in particular, <a href="https://www.csub.edu/%7Ecgavin/GST153/CelebrityStudy.pdf">reality shows</a> (Donald Trump’s “The Apprentice,” “Keeping Up with the Kardashians”) all feature plenty of narcissistic personalities who <a href="http://www.esludwig.com/uploads/2/6/1/0/26105457/bandura_sociallearningtheory.pdf">viewers might then mimic in their everyday behavior</a>. Contestants and stars typically brag of their accomplishments, insult their opponents and demand special treatment during and after filming. Meanwhile, a baseball star, after hitting a game-winning home run, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/04/fashion/blessed-becomes-popular-word-hashtag-social-media.html">might claim he’s been “blessed</a>.”</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/125045/original/image-20160602-23293-828bu8.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/125045/original/image-20160602-23293-828bu8.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=419&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/125045/original/image-20160602-23293-828bu8.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=419&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/125045/original/image-20160602-23293-828bu8.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=419&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/125045/original/image-20160602-23293-828bu8.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=526&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/125045/original/image-20160602-23293-828bu8.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=526&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/125045/original/image-20160602-23293-828bu8.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=526&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Bill Maher.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Nick Lehr/The Conversation</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>On the other hand, the results for those who prefer news broadcasts corroborate <a href="http://crx.sagepub.com/content/33/3/115.short">previous studies</a> showing that news consumers are more civicly engaged and less individualistic.</p>
<p>Our findings come as reality TV series and partisan political shows have proliferated in recent years. In 2000, there were four reality television shows. By 2010, <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=iEuXCgAAQBAJ&pg=PT252&lpg=PT252&dq=2000+4+reality+TV+shows+2010+320+reality+TV+shows&source=bl&ots=3Kom62YGup&sig=LT6Vyzh-urHDnJVM9CunkXz-Thw&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiGzsel8onNAhWj6IMKHffFB7gQ6AEIOzAE#v=onepage&q=2000%204%20reality%20TV%20shows%202010%20320%20reality%20TV%20shows&f=false">that number had ballooned to 320</a>. Meanwhile, some cable news networks today, like Fox News and MSNBC, <a href="https://www.bostonglobe.com/arts/2015/02/26/bill-reilly-and-growth-partisan-media/SiTny61lsaOFav0QV7szwK/story.html">feature “wall-to-wall” opinion shows</a>. </p>
<p>When viewers are exposed to so many characters and personalities exhibiting narcissistic behavior and being rewarded, <a href="https://theconversation.com/inspired-by-kim-kardashian-a-feverish-legion-of-followers-struggle-to-achieve-online-fame-51534">they have reason to model such behaviors themselves</a>.</p>
<p>The Kardashians receive lucrative television contracts, while golfer Tiger Woods <a href="http://www.adweek.com/news/advertising-branding/tiger-woods-earns-83-times-more-money-endorsing-things-playing-golf-165649">nets massive endorsement deals</a>. In Donald Trump, we’re now seeing a reality star being rewarded with the Republican presidential nomination. </p>
<h2>While correlation doesn’t mean causation…</h2>
<p>Of course, it’s important to remember that this was a survey rather than a controlled experiment. Therefore, we cannot infer whether television exposure and genre preferences actually make people more narcissistic, or whether people who are more narcissistic are simply more likely to watch certain types of shows. We think that the first explanation is more compelling, but future research will be able to better determine the direction of these relationships.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/125035/original/image-20160602-23298-1me7tmu.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/125035/original/image-20160602-23298-1me7tmu.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=414&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/125035/original/image-20160602-23298-1me7tmu.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=414&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/125035/original/image-20160602-23298-1me7tmu.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=414&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/125035/original/image-20160602-23298-1me7tmu.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=520&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/125035/original/image-20160602-23298-1me7tmu.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=520&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/125035/original/image-20160602-23298-1me7tmu.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=520&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Lacy and Marcus from Season 1 of ‘Bachelor in Paradise.’</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Nick Lehr/The Conversation</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We doubt many people consider these results a surprise. Estimates of average television exposure <a href="http://www.bls.gov/tus/tables/a1_2014.pdf">now range from three to five hours per day</a>, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics and <a href="http://www.nielsen.com/us/en/insights/reports/2016/the-total-audience-report-q4-2015.html">Nielsen</a>. It’s a reasonable assumption that any leisure activity that occupies about 20-30 percent of the average person’s waking hours will have some influence on someone’s personality. And that’s just “traditional” viewing in front of a television. The average person <a href="http://www.nybooks.com/articles/2016/02/25/we-are-hopelessly-hooked/">will spend even more time</a> consuming television shows on portable devices like laptops and smartphones. </p>
<p>This level of media exposure becomes concerning when the shows feature individuals who model rampant self-interest, disregard of others’ well-being and a focus on the individual above all else. </p>
<p>We think it partially explains the rise in narcissism since the 1970s. And perhaps in that, there is an explanation for the attraction to a candidate like Donald Trump.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/57702/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Studies have shown that since the 1970s, people’s scores on the Narcissistic Personality Inventory are rising. Could there be a connection to television consumption?Robert Lull, Vartan Gregorian Post-doctoral Fellow in Science Communication, University of PennsylvaniaTed Dickinson, Ph.D. Candidate in Communication, The Ohio State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/481752015-10-01T00:21:45Z2015-10-01T00:21:45Z‘Whitesplaining’: what it is and how it works<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/96740/original/image-20150930-19539-zhyawq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">What is 'whitesplaining' and why do celebrities get accused of it? </span> </figcaption></figure><p>Have you ever had an experience where someone is explaining to you, maybe in a lot of detail, something you actually already know quite a lot about? Possibly about your own life?</p>
<p>It’s frustrating. But it’s not a random occurrence, and it’s often about power. There’s a word for it: “<a href="https://theconversation.com/mansplaining-the-word-of-the-year-and-why-it-matters-37091">whitesplaining</a>”. </p>
<p>It’s a term that’s been in high rotation over the past couple of weeks, thanks to <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-martian-what-robinson-crusoe-matt-damon-and-viola-davis-have-in-common-47904">Hollywood film star Matt Damon</a> and Australian radio and TV personality Kyle Sandilands, whose comments around issues of racial diversity and sexuality have <a href="http://www.sbs.com.au/movies/article/2015/09/17/matt-damon-apologises-saying-whitesplaining-comments-taken-out-context">sparked debate</a> around issues of white privilege and “colour-blindness”. </p>
<p>Let’s re-examine their comments: </p>
<p>While appearing on <a href="http://www.vox.com/2015/9/14/9325989/matt-damon-diversity-project-greenlight">Project Greenlight</a> two weeks ago, Matt Damon – in the midst of a discussion about forming a directorial team for a reality show – argued the decision to appoint a director should be based on merit rather than diversity. </p>
<p>His comments suggest diversity is only an issue when casting actors, not behind-the-scenes crew such as directors.</p>
<p>A short while later, Damon gave an interview to The Observer where he argued gay actors should <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/sep/27/matt-damon-i-think-you-are-a-better-actor-the-less-people-know-about-you">remain private about their sexuality</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>But in terms of actors, I think you’re a better actor the less people know about you period. And sexuality is a huge part of that. Whether you’re straight or gay, people shouldn’t know anything about your sexuality because that’s one of the mysteries that you should be able to play.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>As Nigel Smith <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/sep/29/matt-damon-hypocritical-gay-actor-comments">pointed out</a> in The Guardian, Damon’s point negated the interview he then gave, which spanned such personal topics as how he met his wife, their children and family life, his childhood and his political views. </p>
<p>Closer to home, Kyle Sandilands last week explained to the Australia television viewing public that the lack of non-white contestants on a new season of The Bachelorette is <a href="http://www.kiis1065.com.au/entertainment/entertainment-news/bachelorette-sam-frost-defends-all-white-cast">irrelevant</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>I think a lot of young people don’t think like that. They don’t think “Oh we better have a black, we better have a brown.”</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>Being ‘colour-blind’ and why it’s a problem</h2>
<p>Let’s begin by unpacking Sandilands’ comments. His perspective is one that suggests “people are people”. </p>
<p>About 20 years ago academic <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/news/2007/jul/09/guardianobituaries.obituaries3">Ruth Frankenberg</a> studied the phenomenon of white people explaining away race and difference by declaring “people are people”. Her book, <a href="https://www.upress.umn.edu/book-division/books/white-women-race-matters">White Women, Race Matters: The Social Construction of Whiteness</a> (1993), explores the unspoken racial hierarchies around us. </p>
<p>In her terms, Sandilands self-identifies as “<a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/09/color-blindness-is-counterproductive/405037/">colour-blind</a>”. It means you say you don’t see racial difference. Often making reference to Dr Martin Luther King junior’s <a href="http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/mlkihaveadream.htm">famous quote</a> about being judged not “by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character”, proponents argue that <a href="http://dyn.politico.com/printstory.cfm?uuid=204B316A-BBF4-46A4-81AE-CFD90C1D448C">drawing any attention to race is, in fact, more racist</a>. </p>
<p>An extreme form of a colour-blind attitude to race can be seen in the US movement <a href="http://unhyphenatedamerica.org/why-unhyphenated-america/">Unhyphenate America</a>, which argues terms such as African-American are divisive:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Cultural cohesion and connectedness are more important than having a “diversity” of skin colour. Anyone can choose to be a part of this culture, because the principles aren’t ethnically exclusive. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>Sandilands made his on-air comments in response to his guest Sam Frost’s defence that The Bachelorette producers didn’t even think about race when casting the show. </p>
<p>But in a “colour-blind” world, they should have thought about it – because all the contestants for The Bachelorette are the same colour. In fact, Australian television in general <a href="https://theconversation.com/lets-see-all-the-faces-of-team-australia-on-our-tv-screens-41231">fails to reflect</a> our diverse population. So what’s happening here?</p>
<p>The selection process for who ends up on our screens is not neutral because, like it or not, <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/basics/bias">we do notice difference</a>, including <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/between-the-lines/201204/studies-unconscious-bias-racism-not-always-racists">race or ethnic differences</a>, and we <a href="http://www.jstor.org/stable/20141814?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents">act on this awareness</a> in subtle ways. Ways that end up suggesting that the bachelors of Australia are white.</p>
<p>This is where the episode of Damon “whitesplaining” the world of race to an African-American woman is useful to explore. <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1090023.White">Richard Dyer</a>, another scholar of race and culture, describes these situations in terms of white invisibility and white privilege:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>White people create the dominant images of the world and don’t quite see that they thus construct the world in their image.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>White people move through the world in a way that is made to suit a particular worldview. Damon, in explaining away any need for affirmative action, or awareness of race in film and TV, is only saying: I, personally, did not need it. He does not see his whiteness and all the privileges that come along with it. </p>
<h2>Whitesplaining</h2>
<p>Whitesplaining – derived from “<a href="https://theconversation.com/mansplaining-the-word-of-the-year-and-why-it-matters-37091">mansplaining</a>” – is a new, zietgeisty word, but it’s essentially an expression of privilege: the unconscious, unearned and largely un-examined benefits of prejudice. </p>
<p>The concept of “privilege” was fully articulated in its modern form by Peggy McIntosh in her 1988 essay, <a href="http://amptoons.com/blog/files/mcintosh.html">White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack</a>.</p>
<p>In it, McIntosh lists specific and personal examples of her white privilege. Point number 30 is particularly relevant here:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>If I declare there is a racial issue at hand, or there isn’t a racial issue at hand, my race will lend me more credibility for either position than a person of colour will have.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Sandilands and Damon are white, famous, middle-aged men. They used their platforms to make statements about the non-existance of social issues that actively benefit them. </p>
<p>All of this is not to say Damon or Sandilands are necessarily racist. Their comments, however, are examples of how easy it is for those with privilege to assume their experiences are universal. Because our media, our government and our cultural institutions constantly reflect whiteness back at us, it is easy to act as if is the default. </p>
<p>Privilege is insidious because benefiting generally involves little to no effort. It is often the result of other people’s actions towards you, and requires simply that you look a certain way. Conversely, perpetuating privilege means acting on invisibly socialised patterns of behaviour. </p>
<p>Calling out whitesplaining is not about saying white people can’t talk about race: it means prioritising the voices of those with experience, not those with the loudest megaphone.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/48175/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Catriona Elder receives funding from Australia Research Council </span></em></p>Matt Damon and Kyle Sandilands have both been accused of ‘whitesplaining’, but what does that mean?Catriona Elder, Associate Professor in Sociology, University of SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.