The topic of reality shows is an important issue to speak about, due to the sheer amount of lacking representation in contestants or individuals chosen to be viewed as desirable. Shows like the Bachelor perpetuate standards and ideals of people who look a certain way, with minimal differences between season line-ups. Issues with reality television have been brought up before by individuals who notice and hope to change these harmful and ignorant representations.

Why is it an issue? From an ethical level, if everyone agrees to use the same set of standards, it will deny the value of others who may not look like these specific ideals. For example, in some reality shows, the men at the center of it appear as tall, strong, and conventionally handsome, then other men who do not meet this set of standards may be glossed over and inadvertently excluded. Even if they have expertise or good qualities in other areas, their physical appearance may become the overshadowing issue. This does not only extend to the male representation in these shows, but it also affects women in equally severe and detrimental ways. Women who watch shows such as Keeping up with the Kardashians and/or weight loss or cosmetic surgery shows are constantly exposed to media telling them they need to look a certain way or do various things to keep themselves desirable and fit into what society deems attractive and worthy of attention. Everyone who watches these series gets accustomed to viewing and idolizing the same body types and appearances and eventually it changes their own perceptions and beliefs about their bodies or others’. 

These reality shows should not have a unified standard. If all of us accept and agree to these standards, many people will be excluded from them. This will inevitably cause our society to further form a kind of prejudice, which will affect many people who do not meet these unrealistic, and sometimes harmful, standards. These unified values ​​that have been manipulated will deny many people with a multitude of identities. 

Patriarchy and people with vested interests with class advantages have caused such problems. They hope to promote their own ideas so that they can benefit themselves. So they continue to film such shows because it can make them continue to be profitable. These people are usually in an important social position and so their oriented standard ​​will form a systemic force. It is not because these standards ​​are recognized by others, but because they are easy to promote and benefit from. Therefore, many people in the same social status find that they can gain benefits, so they follow to agree and exercise these standards.