Since the publication of this article, Parvati Shallow has deleted her post. The quotes she reacted to were misrepresentative of the conversation Jeff Probst had with Elvis Duran. The following article has been updated for clarity.
Fewreality showshave revolutionized the genre as much asCBS’Survivor. Created byCharlie Parsons, for more than two decades this program has re-defined the medium with its stories of contestants facing intense challenges, harsh elements, and one another for the grand prize of one million dollars. Yet even beyond that, the show is revolutionary for its representation; for a bulk of its airing (before season 40), the show had been called out for allowing contestants to be homophobic, racist, and misogynistic to others, creating an unequal setting where a person’s identity could cost them the win.
Survivorrecognized this and made an active effort to combat it in recent years,finally working to create a game where truly anyone can thrive…which is what makes hostJeff Probst’srecent comments questionable. In a podcast, the reality star commented that he feels that the series’ greatest characters have been mostly men. However, this answer has been taken out of context. But Probst did the one thing nobody ever wanted:he made an enemy of the Black Widow herself, Parvati Shallow.
Jeff Probst Is Facing His Own Online Tribal Council
While being the host of SurvivorgivesProbst a unique insight into the series, his recent comments have left viewers shocked, not only because of what they represent, but how they contradict what he’s said in the past. This all started when Probst appeared on theElvis Duran and the Morning Showpodcast and, during a conversation about how there are more male winners than women, shared that, ‘When you list all the greatest quote unquote characters ofSurvivor, a majority of them are men.’ This belief is particularly shocking because of previous statements from Probst; when the series had just begun its attempt to be more inclusive, Probst himself acknowledged that he was partially to blame for creating a sexist environment, apologizing for the often patronizing way he spoke to women in the early seasons which made male contestants feel they could do the same.
Until these comments, players thought that Probst had understood that the reason there were so many more male winnerswas because a lack of equity made women bigger targets.A fact that is backed up by the knowledge that once the series became more inclusive,there was an overwhelming number of women winners.
Whether it be her many iconic turns on the flagshipSurvivor, dominating inThe Traitors’castle, or killing it on the current season ofDeal or No Deal Island,few franchise alumni are as accomplished as Shallow. It has earned her a huge online following, all of whom were tuned in when the star posted Probst’s comment on her Instagram story with the comment, ‘Grrrrr…When your team is primarily made of men and your bias shows that…wonder why women don’t become bigger characters?‘This follows months of online sleuths counting the confessionals of women from earlier seasons and clocking how much less they received than the men, with multiple fans doing the hard work of counting every character’s confessionals and discovering that even women who’ve won their installment almost always receive fewer confessionals their entire seasonthan some men get in just a few episodes.
Parvati Shallow Shows How Important Women Are to ‘Survivor’
This is one of the deluge of stats that fans have begun pulling out since this podcast aired, with many questioning whether Probst is really committed to ensuring that anyone, no matter their gender, has an equal chance of winning the show. It’s a sentiment that Shallow herself has continued to support, with the woman posting on her story once more responding to a comment Probst once made about how he isn’t a big supporter ofSurvivoralumni going on other programs: ‘Maybe us girls just needed a different platform to become bigger characters #traitorsUS’
While theSurvivorhost’s recent comments have made many fans upset, it’d be wrong to completely ignore the many years of Jeff Probst saying how committed he is to making his show equitable for all. Those statements don’t disappear in the face of his recent ones. While he should be evaluated as a whole, many viewers can’t get overhow dangerous his words could be interpreted on the podcast for women who want to go on the program and thrive.Probst hasn’t offered a response on the backlash to his words, but viewers are hoping that this is a learning moment from the host that will come with a renewed recognition of how much women have brought to this franchise —and how manySurvivorlegends like Shallow exist!
