Source: LaJoy Cox of LaJoy Photography; The First Look Photography / lifetime
It’s no secret that fans of Lifetime’s “Married at First Sight,” are looking at experts real crazy right now. The decision to include Chris on the show, more less deem him worthy of a wife has people feeling all types of emotions, ranging from confused to outright livid.
Watching Paige endure Chris’ shenanigans from his crass comments, his insensitive and inconsiderate behavior to the fact that he sprung a whole pregnancy on Paige has been infuriating. And more than that, folks are questioning how the experts could have let something like this happen because at this point, we’re dealing with emotional and psychological abuse—whether Paige sees it like that or not.
In an Instagram post that has since been deleted, Dr. Pepper Schwartz, one of said experts addressed these claims, attempting to shed light on their selection process, how Chris deceived them and even the role Paige is playing in all of this.
See what she had to say below.
“As many of you know, this season of #MAFS included a match that has turned out to be both disappointing and, often, offensive to myself and the viewers. I wanted to make sure you all could have some of the context that I do for why this man was allowed to participate in our program. No excuses: it was a bad call. But please, if you are upset about this match, take a minute to read my words and see how seriously we vet these people before matching them and how much I empathize with all those at home who are horrified by Chris’s actions.
-Pepper”
She explained the process, saying:
“First of all, we do a lot of in depth research on people. Not only do they fill out long questionnaires and have several interviews with all three of us, plus producers, there is also an outside, independent psychological firm that gives tests to applicants at two different times. There is also a forensic researcher, looking for any legal infractions in the last ten years. And we also look a decade back for social media posts that might disqualify someone. All this is to say that if someone gets past all this and turns out to be a bad fit for this process, they have fooled a lot of people. One reason we think this can happen is that all of this is in-depth but not necessarily happening when a person is under stress. People do change—a lot—when threatened or disappointed.”
On the people who want Paige and Chris to stop being filmed
“The reason we keep on is that we have seen similar ‘train wrecks’ turn around.”
(Dr. Pepper used Shawniece and Jephte as an example, which I thought was a false equivalency if I ever saw one.)
“Even if the couple doesn’t get together—at least one person can grow and gain strength and know more about who she or he is and what they want in a partner. More time in the experiment also gives experts more time to counsel, to try and help them work through tough experiences.”
How the experts responded to Chris
“I am appalled at some of the things he has said and done. I don’t know how many of our statements to him make the final cut…but no one is giving Chris “a pass.” I can understand however, if you don’t think it’s enough. But our role is different from your role. We give honest feedback but not everyone can listen and use our insights and critiques to be a better person.
It’s also true that we can tell Paige what we think is in her best interests (i.e. cut all interaction) but that doesn’t mean that she agrees with us and wants to end the relationship. She is an adult, a person determined to see this experiment through, and she considers what we say, but she does what she wants to do. Does a lot of it break my heart? Do I understand your disgust? Of course I do. We must take responsibility for this match-but I assure you the Chris we all see now is not the Chris we met and married to Paige. I wish we knew how to get to the core of someone’s intent and their ability to love all the time, but we cannot…
You can read Dr. Pepper’s full comments, here.
