The misogyny of reality stars reveals MTV’s hypocrisy

Ed. note: This post was originally posted on the Community site.

I have a soft spot for MTV. 

When the entertainment channel launched the Look Different campaign in the spring of 2014, I could not contain my excitement. The Look Different campaign focuses on microaggressions and looks to tackle the internalized bias that often lies behind problematic statements and interactions. Finally, someone in media was looking to take some responsibility for the (mis)education of the digital generations and use their power for good — or at least for better.

Look Different has done some real good, including commercial spots, and these excellent videos highlighting the stories of young activists and their experiences with discussing race. And some of the tenants of the campaign have also bled into other MTV content, with the release of Laverne Cox’s The T Word, the ground-breaking documentary highlighting youthful trans voices.

But then there was last week’s episode of The Challenge.

The Challenge, which has been around for 26 seasons, is a reality show that pulls stars from The Real World, Road Rules, and Are You the One? and pits them against each other in a physical contest for prize money. These personalities are some of MTV’s most recognizable, and the show itself has been an anchor in MTV’s reality show lineup for over a decade.

This season’s theme is Battle of the Exes II, where pairs of exes (all heterosexual) must work together to complete these challenges. In the middle of the season there’s usually some adversity and the teams (however they are made) start to crumble, so the drama spikes. This isn’t new. For this season, however, these occurrences are inherently gendered because of the way the show is designed, leaving room for the spewing of some sexist stuff.

Enter Zach, Jordan, and Johnny R. in last week’s episode.

During a conversation in their room, in reference to Jordan’s difficulty with his partner Sarah, the following exchange occurred.

Zach: Women were created…

Johnny: To bear children.

Zach: From men. God took a rib from Adam to make Eve, so they are made to be…

Jordan: Inferior.

Zach: And are we supposed to honor them? Yes. But these [women] aren’t our wives, these [women] are f—ing swamp donkeys. And if [Sarah] was smarter than you, she would learn how to deal with you because you’re the better athlete. That’s why we’re the better species. Whatever. It’s true. I’ll go on the record saying this.

This footage was taken from a camera in the bedroom, was grainy, and was placed sloppily within the narrative of fighting between Sarah and Jordan. Basically, the footage made the episode because it’s inflammatory, and while I’m confident that the court of public opinion can pick this scene apart, it existed in a vacuum within the episode. There was no one to pushback on the men who made these statements, so they went completely unchallenged and reveled in their own misogyny. MTV only provided one narrative for its viewers, and it was a portrait of misogyny that went unacknowledged and unchecked. What does that mean for the young women watching the show or the young men who are beginning to navigate their relationships with women and one another? What messages did they internalize?

The reality is that while MTV puts forth an image of dismantling bias through the Look Different campaign, and a small subset of content, the network continues to talk out of both sides of its mouth. It sets itself up for better, while allowing reality show contestants to say sexist and homophobic remarks. This is not Zach’s first offense of this kind, and yet MTV continues to bring him back and pay him for his services on their Challenge seasons. The producers and editors do not put everything on the air, and yet MTV continues to place these problematic things on the air even as the network professes to believe in values that contradict these statements.

MTV, at the very least, is creating more work for its own Look Different campaign. By chasing ratings (a tactic that is not working, and hasn’t been), it has decided to put money ahead of the well-being of youth. Of course, MTV is a business, and normally I would expect  nothing better, but MTV claims to be different. If they really are, they need to be better across the board.

Header image credit: Starcasm