What it's like to consume The Bachelor franchise alum's books, podcasts and marketing schemes like essential oils

Slate

"Many people find reality TV stars parlaying their fame into small media businesses annoying and tacky," says Cleo Levin "I get it: It is a crass means for people who haven’t done anything useful to profit off their 15 minutes. The days are gone when Bachelors were doctors or finance moguls, or members of the Borghese family. This content is, admittedly, the single-use plastic overflowing the giant dumpster of the internet. But I also see their work as crucial, singular, world-building—a far more inviting world than the TV show itself. Though I’m a casual fan of The Bachelor franchise in television form, I’m a rabid consumer of all the associated media. To date, former contestants have generated about 20 books, 17 podcasts, and more Instagram and Twitter schemes than it feels rational to try to quantify. When I first wake up, while waiting for the train, or at the end of a long workday, I can take a quick dip into the crystal blue waters of Bachelor Land, full of sparkly dresses, meaningless drama, and expected outcomes, without all the pretentious, overinflated trappings of the actual TV show."

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