Big Brother 21: CBS, producers respond to cast racism, bullying headlines

The reputation of Big Brother 21 is, at the moment, far from a sterling one. Many cast members have been accused of being harsh, derogatory, or even at times racist towards their other houseguests. Jack was subject to controversy earlier this week over an offensive remark he made about “rice pudding” to the Asian-American community, and there have also been hurtful things said towards Kemi, David, and Ovi, who are all gone from the game after their time in Camp Comeback.

While we’ve seen little snippets about some of the bad behavior in the house on the CBS show, we hadn’t heard a full-on statement from the producers addressing … until today. In a statement, here is what both the network and the production team had to say per People Magazine:

“BIG BROTHER is a multi-platform reality competition show about a group of people who live in a house for several months with no contact from the outside world.  The audience is able to view the show during the multiple weekly broadcasts as well as on the 24/7 live, online stream, which captures unedited content of the contestants unfiltered moments in the House … At times, the Houseguests say things that we do not condone. We share some of the viewers’ concerns about inappropriate behavior and offensive comments, and producers have addressed specific incidents with the Houseguests involved. However, there is absolutely no truth that the casting of the show is racially motivated, that the Houseguests’ behavior is predetermined or that the outcome is controlled in any way.”

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Do we believe what the statement says regarding the outcome? Sure, since it doesn’t benefit CBS or Big Brother at all to be in a position where people are talking about bad behavior and racism allegations over the actual gameplay in the house. Not all publicity is good publicity for this show and it’s going to scare away potential viewers. If your brand becomes associated with that, how is that a good thing?

Yet, Big Brother does need to take responsibility for the people that they cast and wonder how in the world they can do it better. Some of starts with the makeup of houseguests — trying to bring in a larger makeup of people from different backgrounds would be helpful as a starting-off point. It keeps the game from becoming a mob and gives a further sense of perspective to viewers. Casting may not be “racially motivated,” but it does feel clear from the past several years that there are certain archetypes that they are trying to hit.

Related News – Be sure to get some more updates from the live feeds

What do you think about CBS’ statement, and the fact that they chose to say something on the subject now? Be sure to share in the comments, and remember to stick around for more news from the feeds. (Photo: CBS.)