Many students on the Southern Miss campus have been watching the new television dating show “Dating Naked,” in which contestants are whisked away to a private, exotic location and allowed to enjoy interesting dates. Each contestant goes on two dates to see who they hit it off with the most.
I know this sounds like the regular “The Bachelor” show. The difference becomes apparent when the clothes come off. The men and women on the show are naked during the entirety of both dates.
In decades long ago, men and women would undertake courting. The man would greet his date at the door, say a few kind words to the Mr. and Mrs. and then the two would share a lovely evening together. The dating ritual works a lot differently these days, and with the social media and television phenomenons, one’s options are endless.
We have EHarmony, Farmers Only and Christian Mingle as online outlets to meet others, and one could also enter to be a part of “The Bachelor,” “The Bachelorette” and now, “Dating Naked.”
Students across campus have mixed opinions of this new television show.
Lauren Lott is a junior speech pathology major. Lott has seen the show several times and loves it. “It’s reality TV at its finest,” Lott said.
First dates are nine times out of 10 going to be pretty awkward. The conversations are very on-the-surface, the car ride to and from can be pretty antsy and then there is that fear swimming in your mind that you will run into an ex.
“(But then) what’s more awkward than a first date?” Lott said. “A date where you don’t wear pants.”
Taylor Anderson, senior public relations major, had quite a different view than Lott.
“I think that it makes physical attraction more prominent in the interaction and not as much about getting to know them,” Anderson said. “Whether you want to or not, you will look at their private parts.”
“Dating Naked” also raises the question: how far will producers go to shock their audience? Nothing like this has ever been on daytime television. The private areas of the men and women are not visible to the viewer; but at the same time, people know what is behind the blurred lines.
Recently, the producers missed a clip and viewers actually saw a female contestant’s private area. Clips have been circulating all over the Internet.
Many students, when asked about the show, said they loved it. It is risqué, surprising and something many of us have ever seen before on TV. “Dating Naked” is making waves and will continue to do so until something even more shocking comes around.
The climb of social media and television continues to reach new heights daily and this program takes dating shows to a whole new level. “Dating Naked” may be here to stay, and we all are probably wondering how far the dates will actually go.
