Every Bachelor/Bachelorette season, fans all across the nation tune in to watch groups of women or men compete in a pageant-like contest for the affection and attention of a chosen single. There is drama, fighting, tears and eventually a proposal that may or may not last. Is it entertaining? Yes. Is it ethical? Maybe?
Every year there are a few contestants on the show who have an affiliation with nonprofit organizations or other causes, and the show gives them a platform to gain awareness and support for the foundation they represent. This year’s Bachelor, former NFL player Colton Underwood, has a nonprofit organization called the Legacy Foundation, which he started in honor of his cousin with Cystic Fibrosis. Cystic Fibrosis is a genetic disease that affects mostly the lungs, as a result, patients’ often experience lung infections, which results in long-term difficulty breathing.
The Legacy Foundation uses its resources to provide AffloVests to people in need, so far, they’ve given 50 vests to patients in need. An AffloVest is a newer form of treatment designed to help people with Cystic Fibrosis clear their airways. The vest uses a battery pack for power, making it lightweight and mobile and allowing for much more activity.
How does the Legacy Foundation provide these vests to those who need them? Through donations and the sale of their products, t-shirts and rosé.
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Underwood recently went on an elaborate date on the show, in which he invited multiple children to join him and contestant Elyse at a theme park in San Francisco. While explaining to Elyse, and the cameras, what his organization does, Underwood said that they let kids be kids instead of patients. The AffloVest was never mentioned on the show and neither was the wine. Whether that’s because Underwood didn’t talk about it or the producers had it edited out, we don’t know.
There has already been drama on this season, two former pageant girls are competing against each other once again, resulting in tears from both and confusion for all. One cries because she feels she’s being set up by the other and is hurt by her lies (we don’t know if they’re lies, but it wouldn’t be surprising), and the other cries because she thinks she ruined her chances and doesn’t want to go home first. These pageant girls have caused quite a commotion on the bachelor stage, but one thing they’ve highlighted more than anything else is that the TV show is most definitely a competition.
We sometimes forget because a train wreck is so entertaining to watch, that The Bachelor and Bachelorette are competitions that pit men and women against each other with the promise of very public love. Unfortunately, most couples who survive The Bachelor(ette) don’t survive life after the show. Which just proves that the entire process of finding your soulmate on a TV show is not normal and unrealistic. The idea that 30 women or men would leave their lives behind to compete for one man/woman would be ridiculous if it wasn’t televised. Even those who don’t get the final rose or the ring, depending on how long they lasted on the show, walk away with thousands of Instagram followers, brand deals and fans.
The Bachelor(ette) definitely does do some civic good by bringing awareness to issues and causes. But is that enough to overshadow the harm that it does by presenting the idea that you have to compete (against 30 people) for true love? That’s a decision each viewer will have to make for themselves.