Netflix cancels reality show Bling Empire after criticism of Asian American stereotypes

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Netflix cancels reality show Bling Empire after criticism of Asian American stereotypes

Netflix has canceled the reality show franchise Bling Empire, the streaming service, according to NBC News.

The news, first reported by Deadline, comes just months after the spinoff premiered in January.

Netflix didn't provide any further comment on the cancellation.

In January 2021, Bling Empire premiered its first season. The franchise was largely seen as groundbreaking in a reality show genre that was widely criticized for its lack of diversity.

Many in the Asian American community have been divided on the issue, but it has come to an end. The cast members' wealth and privilege aimed to perpetuate stereotypes about Asian Americans being affluent. Many said that the show's premiere during the pandemic was tone-deaf, as it coincided with the massive economic losses that many Asian-owned businesses suffered due to the heightened anti-Asian hate.

Why does our society still celebrate the 1 percent that does not represent the vast majority of our human experience, let alone the Asian American experience, especially when our nation is grappling with a pandemic and economic crisis? Michelle Yang, a novelist, wrote in an op-ed.

But some argued that the mischievous, imperfect and, at times, mediocre scenes of the shows were the reason they were so powerful.

The Bling Empire creates a conditioned space that normalizes the experience of seeing Asian people act foolishly, propelled by pettiness or generosity at turns, driven by lust as often as shame, holding petty grudges about inconsequential disputes and then making stilted attempts at reconciliations, Jean Chen Ho wrote in Harper s Bazaar. The white majority has always enjoyed playing out on the screen without fear of casting embarrassment onto the entire race.