CBS is officially setting new diversity guidelines for the shows Survivor and Big Brother and other shows this upcoming season. These shows will include Love Island and The Amazing Race as well.
What We Know:
- The network announced Monday that all of its reality shows will feature a cast of at least 50 percent Black, Indigenous People of Color (BIPOC), starting with the 2021-2022 seasons of programming, according to E!-Online. Fans have been asking for much greater diversity and a mix of races until the network finally made the change.
- In addition, CBS will also allocate a minimum of 25 percent of its annual unscripted development budget to projects created or co-created by BIPOC producers to give greater opportunity to diverse showrunners. They want to devote at least a quarter of its future script development budget to stories by BIPOC writers. The network has set an initial target of having at least 40 percent BIPOC writers in every series’ writers’ room with hopes to bump it up to 50 percent minimum next year.
- Both Survivor and Big Brother have faced some racial controversy in the past. In Big Brother, there were some houseguests who were criticized for making racial remarks and jokes. This was towards an Asian houseguest in July 2019. In 2018, there was a controversy surrounding the use of the n-word.
- Survivor has dealt with its fair share of issues over the past few years. The producers have been accused of favoring white players and winners for years over minority contestants. Season 39 was the first time the show ever had a player removed from the game over issues with harassment and unwanted touching, which prompted the network to make changes behind the scenes.
- On the show Love Island, they crowned their first black couple the winners this past September.
These changes will be implemented in the upcoming 2021-2022 seasons. There most likely won’t be as many people of color as some are thinking, but it will be an improvement from all the seasons before.
