Bachelor 25 - Matt James - Media SM - Discussion - *Sleuthing Spoilers*

I give kudos to Rachel for shining the light brightly on the franchise because I feel that was one of the major nudges in the right direction. She refused to be ignored.
I think and hope Matt’s season will be fabulous.

Chgohighlife wrote:I give kudos to Rachel for shining the light brightly on the franchise because I feel that was one of the major nudges in the right direction. She refused to be ignored.
I think and hope Matt’s season will be fabulous.

Chicago, ITA, Rachel had a lot to do with this. She has been on top of TPTB for a long while to get a POC as the male lead.

Well at least he was a good guy before BN.  New Yorker of the week

Rachel is saying that this is lovely, but rushed?

https://people.com/tv/rachel-lindsay-reacts-to-matt-james-being-named-first-black-bachelor/

provenceguy wrote:Rachel is saying that this is lovely, but rushed?

https://people.com/tv/rachel-lindsay-reacts-to-matt-james-being-named-first-black-bachelor/

And she’s right about the whole setup. Her issue is not that Matt’s was named to be the first bachelor. Her statement is referring to how it was done.

I saw a portion of GMA interview and it wasn’t like the other announcements, it was rushed. I found it interesting that the anchor brought up his mother (pic of her) right into the segment and I had to asked, if she wasn’t white, would they have done that? Also, is Tyler going to be his wing man on the show? Tyler was highlighted in the interview more so than Matt’s charity and cause. Not much about BLM... except for the Black host trying to make light but focus on the systemic race issue with the show.

Also, what a year it is to have the first Black bachelor that’s rift with issues, uncertainties, pandemic, and protests. His season’s settings and management will be different in many ways. Think about kissing and traveling etc

Here’s hoping for the best Matt... it’s a challenge in more ways than one.

Idlemess wrote:

provenceguy wrote:Rachel is saying that this is lovely, but rushed?

https://people.com/tv/rachel-lindsay-reacts-to-matt-james-being-named-first-black-bachelor/

And she’s right about the whole setup. Her issue is not that Matt’s was named to be the first bachelor. Her statement is referring to how it was done.

I saw a portion of GMA interview and it wasn’t like the other announcements, it was rushed. I found it interesting that the anchor brought up his mother (pic of her) right into the segment and I had to asked, if she wasn’t white, would they have done that? Also, is Tyler going to be his wing man on the show? Tyler was highlighted in the interview more so than Matt’s charity and cause. Not much about BLM... except for the Black host trying to make light but focus on the systemic race issue with the show.

Also, what a year it is to have the first Black bachelor that’s rift with issues, uncertainties, pandemic, and protests. His season’s settings and management will be different in many ways. Think about kissing and traveling etc

Here’s hoping for the best Matt... it’s a challenge in more ways than one.

The franchise reps saying they were thinking of Matt since Feb is basically them saying they were having noble thoughts before the diversity petition and before BN alumni and fans started making noise.

Matt now has a few months to observe how the show PR will be presenting him before he begins filming. That should be valuable to him.

ITA Those  are my exact same thoughts. Not only did they rush into it to save their own butts, they pretty much threw Clare under the bus since now everyone is talking about TB. Otherwise why not just let everything play out like it normally does? Let Matt go on her season, and announce him after her season ended. What other reason would there be for them to announce him now when the ette doesn't even have a filming start date yet.

notarose wrote:snipped

Despite that, IMO Matt was named this week as Bach to shut down talk of the franchise being racist or discriminatory. I don’t think that’s a knee jerk reaction. I think it was calculated as damage control to up their image and to shift the narrative away from their history and get people talking about their black bachelor instead of why they don’t hire more POC on their production team and other past practices with POC cast. Matt, bff of highly popular Tyler, and part of the same quarantine crew as Hannah B, is a PR gift for TPTB.

Well said.

Bobette wrote: snipped

I was referring more to today's announcement which does seem suspiciously well timed politically IMO.  Don't they only usually announce the US Lead shortly before filming begins?

Regardless, I agree he seems like a solid guy and he's a PR dream for TPTB.  I'm keen to watch and sleuth.  When do we think filming will begin; any official word on that yet?

I think I snipped too much or it was in another post. Yes, casting diversity should be done every season, and they shouldn't expect to be patted on the back. That type of executive decisions get under my skin. (BIP Demi Burnett and Kristian Haggerty "see we casted inclusion )

It's simple, treat everyone the same and don't expect to be given kudo's. Everyone is entitled to equality.

I'll get off my rant now.

Hopefully they will cast contestants that are compatible with Matt however, we know year after year this isn't always the case. They have their two or three and the rest give me headaches.

I think they felt they had to announce Matt as TB partly because of the petition. Rachel may still be doubtful about their motives but a lot of people are really happy that we're finally getting a black bachelor. You can even tell here because it feels like there's more interest in Matt than there has been with Clare. Time will tell if there are changes for the future but I'm guessing that there will be more WOC applying this season than ever before. JMO of course.

I believe they asked about his mom because he had said that he hadn't told her before that day. I thought that was too funny.

@MiniDiva Honestly, it’s so obvious to me that Matt has been considered as a possible Bachelor ever since Tyler introduced him as a potential candidate. I remember somewhere Tyler was asked- again- if he saw being The Bachelor in his future and he would say he had other plans, the timing wasn’t right, blah blah blah, ... and he would say Matt would be a great Bachelor, etc. So, after he was announced to be on Clare’s season, he gained even more popularity. Many would say they would watch because of him; the quarantine crew also helped create more exposure for him. Then, Matt was very diplomatic when Clare had this PR misstep about cameos etc... and I’m sure TPTB were observing all this and maybe even spoke to him about his interest for Clare and maybe The Bachelor.
They have this guy who is BFF with the MOST POPULAR Bach contestant EVER, he’s a stand up guy, well educated, articulate, used to camera, easy on the eyes, and is also a POC. It’s a win- win all around, and given the political situation, they played their Ace right away, to maximise their broken image and get people excited NOW for a still very uncertain franchise / filming future.
It’s a great PR move and Matt is also winning as he skipped a very iffy Bachelorette season, where they will test the new guidelines and restrictions and figure some of the creaks before they plunge into the REAL Bachelor filming.
In other words, Matt was not chosen because he has a ‘ great personality ‘ and is a hot POC. He just fits all the PR requirements to make them look great, and they are so happy with their move that they are announcing him now...almost 3 months ahead of normal scheduling. In my book, they’re still not to be trusted and highly manipulative and I’m hoping that Matt was indeed briefed and coached by Tyler or Hannah to stand on his own and not compromise his integrity.

JMOAA

provenceguy wrote:Rachel is saying that this is lovely, but rushed?

https://people.com/tv/rachel-lindsay-reacts-to-matt-james-being-named-first-black-bachelor/

Just read this article with Rachel and I totally agree with her observations (she even uses the same phrase I did: knee-jerk reaction).  

Rachel Lindsay thinks it's "lovely" that Matt James has been named the first black Bachelor — but she also feels the decision was both "rushed" and a "knee-jerk reaction" to pressure put on the franchise by society to be more diverse and inclusive.

I also agree with what was said elsewhere that announcing him now and saying they already had him in mind prior makes Clare look like a bit of a muppet since they're pretty much admitting they cast him for their own purposes, not as a potential match for her.  

We already know they only cast a few people with the Lead in mind but to hear them be so blatant about it feels a bit unsavoury IMO.

notarose wrote:

Idlemess wrote:

provenceguy wrote:Rachel is saying that this is lovely, but rushed?

https://people.com/tv/rachel-lindsay-reacts-to-matt-james-being-named-first-black-bachelor/

And she’s right about the whole setup. Her issue is not that Matt’s was named to be the first bachelor. Her statement is referring to how it was done.

I saw a portion of GMA interview and it wasn’t like the other announcements, it was rushed. I found it interesting that the anchor brought up his mother (pic of her) right into the segment and I had to asked, if she wasn’t white, would they have done that? Also, is Tyler going to be his wing man on the show? Tyler was highlighted in the interview more so than Matt’s charity and cause. Not much about BLM... except for the Black host trying to make light but focus on the systemic race issue with the show.

Also, what a year it is to have the first Black bachelor that’s rift with issues, uncertainties, pandemic, and protests. His season’s settings and management will be different in many ways. Think about kissing and traveling etc

Here’s hoping for the best Matt... it’s a challenge in more ways than one.

The franchise reps saying they were thinking of Matt since Feb is basically them saying they were having noble thoughts before the diversity petition and before BN alumni and fans started making noise.

Matt now has a few months to observe how the show PR will be presenting him before he begins filming. That should be valuable to him.

I think all the show’s eggs are strategically in the Matt basket right now. Clare’s season will be full of drama & basically filler until Matt’s season airs. It’ll be a train wreck. They don’t even need to have a “bachelor edit” for anyone in her season because Matt is not only cast, but announced.

provenceguy wrote:Rachel is saying that this is lovely, but rushed?

https://people.com/tv/rachel-lindsay-reacts-to-matt-james-being-named-first-black-bachelor/

I'm thrilled with Matt as the Bach since it's the closest thing we can get to Tyler, but as usual IMHO Rachael still comes off as a big bully.....If she can't get her way she'll take her toys and go home.;( Not a fan at all.