Depicting Disability on Reality Love TV

Sarah Herron on "The Bachelor"

Consider the incidentalist instance of contestant Sarah Herron’s appearance on The Bachelor (and subsequent showing on Bachelor in Paradise). Through 21 seasons of The Bachelor, Herron has remained the only contestant to have been featured with a physical or visible disability. Herron’s left arm was amputated at birth after experiencing amniotic band syndrome in utero, a condition which often restricts blood flow to the limbs. The Bachelor has been notorious for its traditionally white, young, beautiful, and able-bodied cast—an archetype that would otherwise include Herron if not for her disability. While reception to her appearance was generally positive, many responses further prove the necessity of more disability representation on reality love television.
            In appearing on The Bachelor, Herron’s disability is nonessential to the narrative or plot. Minor backstory aside, the show never delves into or illustrates the challenges of life with disability. In this way, Herron’s appearance is an example of incidentalist exposure. Though it allows viewers to identify with the character, it prohibits social learning. Subsequently, news and social media responses in reaction to Herron’s presence displayed an ignorance about disability. One USA Today article, beings with: “Of all the women Bachelor Sean Lowe could have picked for his first one-on-one date, he chose Sarah Herron, an ad exec from Colorado who was born with only one full arm”, as though it was remarkable that a consenting man would choose a disabled woman over able-bodied alternatives. Twitter comments range from baffling remarks that refer to Sarah as "tragic":

to patronizing:

to downright ableist:
Herron is commonly identified by her disability, even in a flattering context:

Herron’s disability didn’t evade notice on primetime television either. During season 3 of Bachelor in Paradise, fellow contestant Chad Johnson grew irate and inebriated before calling Herron “that one-armed bitch.” While many fans displayed outrage at such blatantly ablest comments which use Herron’s disability as an insult, others were quick to jump to Johnson’s defense, as illustrated by one tweet directed towards Herron:
Still, other fans urged Johnson to remain unrepentant for his widely condemned comment:
Social media responses to the instance of disability were rarely overtly negative, but were often patronizing, naïve, or subtly ableist. These pro-ablism and anti-disability comments illustrate the importance of properly represented disability in educating the able-bodied to reduce prejudice.

Consider the case study on "The Undateables"
Return to "Chapter 2: The Wrong Way"
Continue on to "Chapter 3: Inauthentically"