Coming out on "The Biggest Loser"

[Kitan Etos]

[rexbeccarox]

I can't wait for the day "coming out" is no longer necessary.

[downbeatplumb]

My gaydar informed me Harper was gay the first time I saw him on the show.

I just looked him up on you tube and can see what you mean.
Only people who have never seen him would think he was straight.

[Clueless Morgan]

I'm torn about this.

On the one hand I'm of the opinion of "who cares if Bob Harper is gay? Who cares is anyone is gay?" but obviously there are people who do care about this kind of thing and I understand that a lot of people might see this as a kind of revelation or a huge shock.

On the other hand, I was kind of upset that he would encourage Bobby (his contestant) to come out to his dad after Bobby had explained his concerns about his family being really religious and not knowing how his dad would react... I thought that Bobby had a valid concern that Bob and the show were downplaying in order to get a coming out story. For that reason I felt like Bob's coming out was manipulative, both of Bobby and of the audience. It also brings up the issue of whether the show is about the contestants or the trainers and other irritations I have with that show...

I was happy that Bobby didn't have the sit down talk with his dad on the show. I don't think that his dad would have had a major meltdown and disown him on national TV or anything like that, but I am very much against reality TV shows that orchestrate big emotional moments and this, to me, would have been one of those moments where I would have felt manipulated as a viewer, and would have felt that Bobby was being manipulated by the producers of the Biggest Loser simply to get an emotional moment and a ratings bump.

Oh the trappings and pitfalls of reality TV.