‘The Challenge’: Aneesa Ferreira ‘on the Fence’ When It Comes to How MTV Handles Controversy
MTV’s The Challenge has begun holding its talent responsible for offensive comments by removing them from its platform. However, they do so without airing the scene, creating confusion for the viewers. Seasoned veteran Aneesa Ferreira shared her opinion, admitting she’s “on the fence” but disagreed with how they handled firing Dee Nguyen.
Aneesa Ferreira thinks social media plays a part in how MTV handles controversy
In a Nov. 2021 interview with The Challenge Fandom, longtime veteran Aneesa Ferreira addressed MTV’s new decision to fire cast members for making offensive remarks and not airing the controversial scene.
When the host asked if she thought they should leave the scenes unedited to create a “teachable moment,” Aneesa admitted she’s “on the fence.” She first drew from her own experiences, pointing out they had to “solve” their issues while on The Real World: Chicago.
Although the reality star noted others had made insensitive remarks off camera, she said people weren’t as aware of “implicit biases” at the time. Additionally, they didn’t have social media at the time.
Aneesa admitted she thought the active online communities played a part in MTV’s decision to remove the scenes altogether as certain “fans are awful.” However, she admitted the network’s decision to edit out the questionable scene and remove the player leaves a “missing piece,” especially from a storytelling perspective.
She also admitted she disagreed with how ‘The Challenge’ handled the Dee Nguyen situation
While Aneesa noted it might not make sense, she claimed the producers previously addressed it with them, explaining that they didn’t want to “shine a light on bad behavior.”
The two-time finalist also admitted she disagreed with how MTV handled the Dee Nguyen situation, which the network cut ties with following insensitive tweets about the Black Lives Matter. It fired her as Total Madness aired and edited out all remaining scenes involving the Australian native.
The choice confused many viewers as the rest didn’t make sense due to Dee playing a pivotal role in the season. Aneesa said she felt they should’ve used the moment to teach the competitor, who she noted had a challenging experience growing up as a woman of color in her hometown.
She continued, pointing out she felt people should be able to return after proving they’ve learned from their mistake but doesn’t think social media always allows that. Although it might be confusing, the Real World star said she understands their decision and believes it’s mainly done to protect their “mental health.”
‘The Challenge’ has started removing players from the game for offensive remarks but doesn’t air the scenes
After MTV fired Dee to show solidarity to the Black community, many fans began calling for the removal of Jordan Wiseley, who made racially charged comments toward Black roommate Nia Moore during a 2013 episode of The Real World: Portland.
While the network has yet to respond, he hasn’t returned to The Challenge since. However, some suspect he might join the cast of the spinoff, All Stars. During the current season, Spies, Lies, and Allies, rookie Lauren Coogan allegedly directed offensive remarks at Aneesa, resulting in her early removal.
The argument reportedly happened at an in-show party, but the show didn’t air the scene. Instead, host T.J. Lavin vaguely touched on her exit before bringing in Amber Borzotra to fill her spot. Later in the season, two-time champ Ashley Mitchell was removed for breaking the rules but didn’t reveal why.
It’s still unknown exactly what she said, but the fan-favorite reportedly made a comment during an argument with Josh Martinez. Many viewers don’t like how MTV has chosen to handle the situations as they believe it’s best to let everything play out and allow people to learn from them. The Challenge airs Wednesdays on MTV.
