'Catfish' Host Nev Schulman Interrupts #BlackGirlsRock With a Really Specific Racial Stereotype

By Courtney Enlow | Celebrity | April 6, 2016 |

By Courtney Enlow | Celebrity | April 6, 2016 |

Catfish, for those of you wholly removed from the cultural zeitgeist, is a good documentary, two good seasons of television and then kind of a mess. And its host Nev Schulman…well, he’s just the most sensitive bro to ever punch a woman because he thought she was a man. And while Twitter revelled in Black Girl Magic during BET’s Black Girls Rock! event, Schulman joined in with a tip of the old proverbial fedora.

Damn, Nev. Whatever happened to #RESPECT for women?

Of course, his #BlackGirlsRock tweet is racist and shitty, but I can’t get over the weird specificity of it. I’ve watched a lot of Catfish and, you know, existed regularly on the internet since circa 1998, and those who take on false personas online for whatever reason comprise a hugely diverse group. And one would generally, I guess if you’re not Schulman, stereotype catfish as GamerGatey trolls. But, as Schulman himself discovered in his own documentary feature wherein his catfish was a middle-aged white woman, catfish are from all backgrounds with all kinds of reasons for doing so, some much more the victim than the person they actually catfished.

With that knowledge and the fact that, again, this is the weirdest fucking stereotype I’ve ever even heard of, Twitter hit back. And, surprisingly (or not surprisingly actually because he’s a very delicate flower and a person with an MTV show to protect) Schulman listened and responded.

Maybe we tend to catfish a lot bc media and society portrays black women as ugly and unwanted, causing self hate. pic.twitter.com/KrOq6LUBmR

— cici (@melaninporn) April 6, 2016

Thank u @melaninporn for taking the time to help me understand some of the issues POC deal w/. Sorry to all I upset. pic.twitter.com/ws9T1JraWf

— Nev Schulman (@NevSchulman) April 6, 2016

You're right to be upset & don't have to accept my apology, but I am deeply sorry to those whom I offended and learned a valuable lesson.

— Nev Schulman (@NevSchulman) April 6, 2016