Mike White credits Jeff Probst with keeping Survivor relevant after more than two decades: "In a way Jeff is a constant in our culture"

The New York Times

“He does all these things that you’d think, after 40 seasons, he would subcontract out and phone in,” the Survivor alum and The White Lotus creator, who had a hand in shaping Season 41, tells The New York Times while vacationing in Paris. “That’s partly why the show still is relevant: It still has life because Jeff is still so enamored with what it could be...In a way Jeff is a constant in our culture. Surviving Survivor for 20 years is no small feat.” Executive producer Mark Burnett says Probst's relative anonymity allowed them to build the show from the ground up. “It was the second greatest decision I have made with Jeff Probst and Survivor," Burnett told The Times via email. “First was choosing Jeff as host and second was having him become the showrunner.” But assuming creative control of the show has resulted in more criticism of Probst, particularly in handling of sexual misconduct when the show had an unwanted touching controversy in 2019. “I’m not always perfect on the show,” says Probst. “I said things that I regret now, I’ve had points of view that I would change now. That was also me in the moment, being vulnerable and learning.” Probst welcomes the criticism, saying you have to change with the times in order to stay relevant. “I have a very healthy sense of myself,” he says. “I’ve never been afraid of being vulnerable or being wrong.”

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• The post-Survivor economy is thriving: "On September 22, Survivor will finally begin its 41st season as 18 new castaways vie for the chance at a $1 million reward," says Mara Reinstein. "They’ll navigate a series of lies and deceptions, deal with being undernourished and overly exhausted, run brutally difficult challenges and solve intricate puzzles under the blazing Fiji sun over the course of 26 days. Someone will emerge victorious. But there will be a game within a game as well—one with infinitely higher stakes and bigger consequences. And for whoever masters it, fame and fortune await. The post-Survivor economy is bustling, with several alums parlaying their as-seen-on-TV personas into success far beyond glad-handing at parties and having a presence on Cameo (though those options remain in rotation). Think high-profile gigs in front of the camera and behind the podcasting microphone; social media sponsorship and a sport ambassadorship; a New York City district attorney campaign and a loyal following on OnlyFans. For those coming out of a season of Survivor, there is no singular path to the promised land of opportunity … only an underlying theme: Unless you’re five-time player 'Boston' Rob Mariano—i.e., an outsized tried-and-true personality and recent regular on CBS’s summer show Secret Celebrity Renovation—you have to be prepared to get your hands dirty and utilize some of that well-honed island strategy."
• Jeff Probst and his team had to reverse engineer Survivor after cutting down the season to 26 days: "It’s interesting how fast you can pivot when you have no options!" he says. "Once we decided to change the game to 26 days, we immediately began to reverse engineer how to ensure that those 26 days would be as difficult as our typical 39-day game. That was the key to everything. We started with a very big change — we eliminated their daily food source. No rations of rice. That, in and of itself, is a complete game changer. It hit them hard. And we cut back dramatically on rewards, so food in general was extremely scarce. This impacted their cognitive abilities within the first several days. To further complicate the game, we started with only six players on each tribe, which means you are in real danger every single time you go to Tribal. From there, we started adding in more dangerous advantages and twists."
• What did Survivor do when it came to the final Season 41 Tribal Council vote revealing the winner?: "Yes, we faced our own dilemma when it came to deciding how to handle the final Tribal Council and the reveal of the winner," says Probst. "But this was more risk versus risk! Should we risk it and do what we always do in the hopes we can do a live finale back in the states? Or do we risk it and announce the winner in the jungles of Fiji and hope the secret stays a secret? What would you do? You'll have to watch to find out what decision we made." 
• Ranking all Survivor seasons from worst to best