The Grauniad on a damaging “reality” show

When someone lives a life pretending to be something else, hiding their true self from the world, there will be consequences once the truth comes out. That’s the sad thing about transgenderism. People are encouraged to lie either directly or by omission. Other people don’t like it when they’ve been lied to. That doesn’t make them a bigot. If my DH suddenly turned round and said he was actually gay, I would be really hurt, not because I’m homophobic - which I’m not - but because he would have lied to me for years.

I thought this was quite good
Unreal: A critical history of Reality TV
Episode 3 on BBC Sounds
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0c71jkv?partner=uk.co.bbc&origin=share-mobile

I agree, the TV production was in the wrong.

I thought the tone of the article was really off. It seemed to be saying that everyone should have been more tolerant - of what? being lied to and made a laughing stock.
And whilst Miriam may have been vulnerable - Miriam was a willing participant and an active liar - not a passive victim

Isn't that rape by stealth?

The sentence "Terms such as cisgender and non-binary were not in common parlance" is so 2010s-2020s though. Words don't change reality. Today, straight men in the same situation would feel exactly the same way, the only thing that would maybe change is how they expressed themselves

Exactly. I found the tone of the article quite irritating. I feel sympathy for both Miriam and the male participants who were competing. The TV production company is to blame. You can't really blame the men for suing.

I remember this programme! It was absolutely horrifying - I felt so sorry for Miriam and the way she was sensationalised and caricatured by all those small-minded people.

I was living in the same precarious situation as her at the time - in deep stealth surrounded on a daily basis by bigoted people who would have reacted unpredictably and dangerously upon discovering my past. It's absolutely terrifying. A lot has thankfully changed since then but nowhere near enough sadly.

Poor soul, so many of these reality shows are just exploitative rubbish.

The article is right that the TV company shamefully and cruelly exploited Rivera.

The sentence "Terms such as cisgender and non-binary were not in common parlance" is so 2010s-2020s though. Words don't change reality. Today, straight men in the same situation would feel exactly the same way, the only thing that would maybe change is how they expressed themselves.

Miriam sounds incredibly vulnerable - only 21, and it sounds like she'd been through an awful lot. What a load of absolute bastards those tv execs must've been.

https://open.spotify.com/show/7pmAWEkvhzuQ11uCmIJmxT
I listened to this

It's an incredibly sad story. The TV company should have had to answer for what happened. Mirian was so vulnerable.

I note the term moral compass is used when referring to TV or TV shows

But people have choices and a moral compass about how to present who they are. If you live a lie, or try to, there are consequences.

TV doesnt have a moral compass as such, thats an unrealistic expectation.

The article does reference the psychologist or whoever he is, noting that the men involved did not consent to be with a man, that is correct to say.