We Need to Talk About Bravo’s “Real Housewives”

Even if you don’t watch Bravo’s “Real Housewives,” you know about the franchise built around ridiculously rich women and over-the-top drama. Recently, fans uncovered six months’ worth of racist social media posts from “Real Housewives of Salt Lake City” star Jennie Nguyen. And in a surprising and unusual move, Bravo fired Nguyen and publicly acknowledged the decision via social media. But with all of the scandalous moments that have gone down on screen, does it really surprise us when the Housewives behave badly off screen? Right now, the network seems to be going through something of a reckoning around racist comments and other bad behavior on its shows, many of which thrive on the drama of the rich elite getting messy on camera. We can’t help but wonder: what does Nguyen’s firing mean for other Housewives and the future of the franchise? You’ll hear from: Alex Abad-Santos, senior culture reporter at Vox Want more Skimm?  Sign up for our free daily newsletter Subscribe and leave us a review wherever you get your podcasts Skimm'd by Senior Producer and Host Bridget Armstrong. Produced by Alaisha Key. Engineered by Andrew Callaway. TheSkimm’s senior director of audio is Graelyn Brashear. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices