We’ve all seen the fairytale in action. A man gets set up with 25 women. The women all live in one house and fight (sometimes each other) for his heart. He falls for one as the woman of his dreams. They live happily ever after—or sometimes not— but the process repeats.
Now, I know "The Bachelor" isn’t the most accurate representation of love, its merely commercialized romanticism to appeal to the emotion of viewers. The media; however, broadcasts to a mass population. This means that whatever content a show highlights is perpetuated throughout our entire society. In this case, over and over again for 20 seasons so far.
"The Bachelor" only including heterosexual relationships in their content reinforces heterosexism, the idea that heterosexual relationships are the norm. Now, in 2017, after a year of legal same-sex marriage, we know there are many additional types of “normal” relationships besides heterosexual. People across the world are living happy lives in non-heterosexual relationships. It is time to create a reality show that actually reflects the reality of the world. Regarding "The Bachelor," this would mean having gay, lesbian, bisexual etc. versions of the show.
It's also important to note the young people of the world who are sitting by their T.V. screens, engulfed in anxiety because they are attracted to something different than what is perpetuated as normal on these shows. A lot of young people struggle with coming to terms with and being proud of their sexuality, so watching shows that focus mainly on heterosexual relationships may set them back regarding the confidence in their sexuality. If more shows welcomed the idea of non-heterosexual relationships, it would begin to make young people be more comfortable with who they are and what they are attracted to.
In the British version of the show, two female contestants, Megan Marx and Tiffany Scanlon, who were initially trying to win the heart of the bachelor actually fell in love with each other and are now in a serious relationship. So even without intention, contestants on the program demonstrate that they are not solely of heterosexual sexuality. This is an example of real life breaking the mold of "The Bachelor" heterosexual pattern.
It is time to break the mold and explore the different sexualities on this TV drama reality show.
