The Bachelor creator found lower ratings for first black Bachelorette Rachel Lindsay “incredibly disturbing”: “It revealed something about our fans”

The New York Times

“I found it incredibly disturbing in a Trumpish kind of way,” says Mike Fleiss. “How else are you going to explain the fact that she’s down in the ratings, when — black or white — she was an unbelievable bachelorette? It revealed something about our fans.” Speaking of President Trump, Fleiss said the current White House made it harder to bring in more Bachelor franchise stars from around the world for The Bachelor Winter Games because securing visas for them proved difficult. “Our president didn’t make things any easier,” says Fleiss. Eleven countries other than the United States will be represented.