Platforms like Zeus have cornered the market for ‘explosive’ black reality TV, but their content can have wider implications for communities already plagued by stereotypes
While reality television is a guilty pleasure for many, it is something I indulge in with un-ironic pride. Even so, there is a type of reality show I watch with a quiet shame, buried under my duvet as if scoffing ortolans. My favourites – black-led series such as Love & Hip Hop, Black Ink Crew and Bad Girls Club – are the ones I feel most conflicted about enjoying.
A dearth of black leads in romantic comedies led to a 90s boom in African
American chick flicks. Similarly, the black reality TV industry thrives concurrent to a mainstream that renders black cast members decorative. Over the years, black media has thrust its own reality stars into the spotlight, and provided less fusty takes on shows such as the Bachelor, in the form of 2006’s Flavor of Love starring Public Enemy’s Flavor Flav, and subsequent spinoff I Love
New York, fronted by former contestant Tiffany “New York” Pollard. However, the visibility provided by these shows is a double-edged sword. Most series unapologetically exacerbate the worst stereotypes that plague the black community: toxic relationships, absent fathers, financial irresponsibility. Glamorous reunion episodes quickly descend into ruckuses, as cast members in red-carpet-worthy gowns square up to one another.