A show that’s all about love has become all about the money:

These days, it looks like most everyone who goes on a reality TV show is looking for more clout, which will then transfer to online sponsorships and dollars.

The good news is that most of these reality show contestants are still choosing to go on their shows and play by the rules before turning their new-found celebrity into cash.

The producers of these shows are responsible for casting the contestants and for making sure that those coming on the shows are there for the right reasons.

If the producers aren’t doing their job, people can slip onto the show with an overt agenda of seeking fame and fortune. It seems like lately, the Bachelor’s producers in particular have been prioritizing their own ratings and profits over the welfare of their contestants.

Much like good parents are supposed to protect their children and keep them from hurting one-another, the Bachelor’s producers are supposed to keep their contestants from indulging in bad behaviours that could cause themselves and the other kids harm.

By allowing contestants on the show who are there for the clout alone, the producers are allowing those who are there for the right reasons to get hurt, and also, they’re allowing the less sincere contestants to commit possible career suicide, by giving them a platform upon which to demonstrate the worst side of themselves.

The Bachelor franchise has become specifically problematic due to the increasing number of contestants who appear to be blatantly seeking fame and fortune, with the most recent season of Bachelor in Paradise being a case in point.

Thomas shows off all the wrong moves:

Thomas Jacobs was a recent contestant on Katie Thurston’s season of the Bachelorette. He was sent home prior to a rose ceremony after Katie learned from the other guys that Thomas had admitted he’d come on the show in the hopes of becoming the next Bachelor.

The overt reason for becoming a contestant on one of the Bachelor franchises is to find love, but given the exceedingly low odds of doing so on the main shows, it’s understandable that a number of contestants would have, at least at the back of their mind, the idea of parlaying their fame into lucrative sponsorship deals.

But Thomas was much too calculating and deliberate in his moves. He was caught in a series of lies, leading to his early expulsion from the show. Now, he has returned on Bachelor in Paradise, and his behaviour doesn’t seem to have changed. He’s as charming as ever but he appears to be equally as manipulative and deceitful.

Shortly after Thomas arrived, he began making out with Tammy Ly, directly in front of Aaron Clancy, the man she’d been spending time with. Aaron was hurt and angry, in part because he believed this to be a direct attack on him as opposed to Thomas having any real feelings for Tammy.

And that seems likely, because as soon as a contestant with a lot more clout than Tammy arrived in paradise – in the person of Becca Kuffrin – Thomas ditched Tammy and got together with Becca. It seems like all of Thomas’ moves are carefully designed to bring him the most attention as possible, both during and after the show.

Brendan and Pieper get egg on their faces:

And then there was the saga of Natasha Parker and Brendan Morais. They were two of the original contestants in paradise who got together right away, despite Brendan keeping himself at a distance from Natasha while also telling her how much he liked her.

The mixed messages were confusing to Natasha but after some heartfelt conversations — at least on her part — she chose to give Brendan the benefit of the doubt.

When Pieper James arrived and immediately asked Brendan on a date, and when the two of them returned from their date, presenting as a solid couple, Natasha was devastated and everyone on the island was instantly suspicious.

It turned out that Brendan and Pieper had become close prior to going on the show and Brendan then admitted that he’d done whatever he needed to do – which in this case, meant stringing Natasha along – until Pieper showed up and they could be together in paradise.

When Brendan was confronted about his behaviour he was hostile and defensive and kept insisting that his relationship with Pieper had been much less serious than it actually was.

Brendan kept rationalizing his bad behaviour by saying that anyway, Natasha “had zero chance of meeting anyone else on the island.”

This was humiliating to Natasha, adding insult to injury. Meanwhile, Pieper had been overheard on a few occasions talking with Brendan about increasing their online followers.

Eventually, after some confrontations with the other contestants, Brendan and Pieper reluctantly left paradise. Since then, Brendan has issued a series of apologies, including the most recent – a seven-minute video.

All this seems more like an attempt at salvaging his reputation – and his hoped-for sponsorships – than a sincere attempt to atone for his horrible behaviour toward Natasha and the others on the island.

Jed lost his fiancée for having broken the rules:

One of the rules of going on the Bachelor is that a contestant shouldn’t have a significant other back home. Hannah Brown’s relationship with fiancé Jed Wyatt ended as soon as she learned that he’d had a girlfriend when he came on her season of the Bachelorette.

Victoria Paul left this season of Bachelor in Paradise early on, after James Bonsall confronted her about rumors that she had a boyfriend back home.

Even Chris Conran and Alana Milne were “voted off the island” when Chris ditched Jessenia Cruz at a party they attended together to hook up with Alana, and everyone suspected from the way he and Alana were behaving that the two of them had been a couple prior to the show.

The most egregious example of gas-lighting on BIP, however, had to be Brendan, who seemed totally self-righteous and self-justifying while in paradise, and then apparently did a full 180-degree turn and became profoundly remorseful when back at home. Having watched his behaviour in paradise, it’s difficult to believe anything he says, today.

Judging by this season of BIP, as well as previous seasons of the regular franchise, it seems like The Bachelor has a real problem with its contestants. It makes me think that the producers are deliberately turning a blind eye to the presence of outside relationships because they want the drama to be played out on the show, for improved ratings and more dollars in their pockets.

I blame the producers:

The problem with such a crass, self-serving attitude on the part of the producers is that contestants who go on the show with sincere intentions to start a relationship are put at a much greater risk of getting hurt, not just from the normal vagaries of romance but from potentially investing in someone who is there under false pretenses.

As disappointed as I am with the behaviour of Brendan, Pieper, Thomas, and the other gas-lighters, I blame the producers of the show for failing to protect the sincere contestants from getting more hurt than necessary.

It feels like the producers have been bad parents, allowing their “kids” to be their worst selves, damaging their own reputations and wreaking emotional disaster on the others.

Instead of chasing profit at the expense of their contestants’ welfare, the producers should put aside their greed and adopt some ethics. They should be rigorously screening all potential candidates to ensure that no one comes on the show with a partner back home or with the blatant agenda of merely seeking clout.

The producers owe it to the contestants who have gone on the show with a sincere intention to find love. They should be the last people responsible for the gaslighting that’s been going on for so long.

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