On June 9, 2020, Bravo and Evolution Media, the production company behind the popular
reality series Vanderpump Rules, announced that Stassi Schroeder, Kristen Doute, Max
Boyens, and Brett Caprioni had been fired from the show. In early June 2020, former
Vanderpump Rules cast member Faith Stowers recalled a 2018 incident where she was racially
profiled by Stassi and Kristen, who admitted to calling the police on her and accusing
her of theft.
"It’s funny they thought it was me because it was a black woman with a weave."
And back in January 2020, racially insensitive tweets resurfaced from both Max and Brett.
When these stories hit the news, fans demanded change from Bravo, and from Watch What Happens
Live host and network staple Andy Cohen specifically. Cohen responded to the outrage from viewers
during a June 10th episode of his SiriusXM show Radio Andy.
"I absolutely support Bravo's decision. I think it was the right decision."
Cohen went on to remind his listeners that, while he may be the face of Bravo, he isn't
in charge of the network, or what happens on Vanderpump Rules. Cohen said,
"I want to remind people, because I've been getting so many tweets and messages and whatever
about Vanderpump Rules and about Southern Charm and other shows...I am not in charge
of programming at Bravo anymore. I am not an executive producer of Vanderpump Rules.
I don't have anything to do with the show except that I love it and that I host the
reunions...I don't produce the show, so what I want people to know is that I have no say
in hiring and firing people."
Cohen also clarified that he's currently only the producer of the Real Housewives shows
and Watch What Happens Live. After he commended the network for the Vanderpump Rules firings,
Cohen told his listeners that he had reached out to one of the stars of Real Housewives
of Atlanta about the controversy, saying,
"There is a lot more to discuss, and we're already having those discussions. I had a
great, very long talk with Kandi [Burruss] two days ago. She had some really fantastic
suggestions for how we can move forward and we're all ears."
On June 8, Cohen hosted a two-part episode of Watch What Happens Live dedicated to a
discussion on Black Lives Matter with Atlanta Housewife Porsha Williams and comedian and
activist W. Kamau Bell.
"It is unfortunate, but true in America that a white person's whisper is worth more than
a Black person's scream."
Additionally, Kandi, Porsha, and Real Housewives of Potomac star Gizelle Bryant took part in
a June 8th panel on Bravo's Instagram called Amplify Our Voices: An Open Dialogue on Being
Black in America.
On May 31, 2020, the official Watch What Happens Live account posted on Twitter,
"WWHL stands in solidarity with the Black community against systemic racism and oppression
experienced every day in America. We owe it to our Black staff, talent, & viewers to demand
change and accountability. To be silent is to be complicit. #BlackLivesMatter."
On his personal accounts, Cohen also participated in Black Out Tuesday and demanded justice
for Breonna Taylor.
Cohen isn't the only one who supports the network's decision to end its relationships
with the now-fired Vanderpump Rules cast members. Faith Stowers talked about the network during
a June 10, 2020 interview with TMZ. Asked if Bravo reached out to her directly, she
revealed,
"No, actually. They didn't. I would have liked that too, just because they could have shown
that I didn't sound crazy."
However, she is happy with the actions Bravo has taken, saying,
"Ultimately, they've shown they cared. They let them go. That's a really big deal."
Referring to Stassi and Kristen, Faith said,
"Those were two people in that cast that are very, very popular. So, for me, that says
a lot about them because they were benefiting from these two women and they were willing
to let them go because of what was done."
Faith made it a point to emphasize that the Bravo network had yet to reach out to her
personally. Perhaps Cohen will extend an olive branch to Faith by inviting her to be a guest
on his show.
"So much happening in the Bravo universe!"
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