The endearingly-titled show Minnesota Nice has become the subject of internet rage after it posted a casting call for a “Caucasian Female co-host For Luxury Product Placement.”
The advertisement reads:
Female must be:
-21-39 years of age
-No visible Tattoos
-5’8” or taller
-Knowledge of the Twin Cities area
-Charismatic and adapt to candid situations
-Video or film background preferred
-Able to commit for 13 weeks for the “season”. Filming will generally be on weekends and some weekdays [.]
Minnesota Nice is, in its own words, a “dynamic, locally forward-thinking” lifestyle show. “Over the years,” the show’s Facebook page reads, “we have found that there is a large and rapidly expanding market for ‘nicer living, nicer restaurants, nicer personal products and nicer fashion.’”
When the ad was first posted, a number of tall, white women expressed their interest in the crappy gig; a number of people also asked the producers why the casting requirements were so arbitrarily offensive.
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“Why do you hate short people?” someone asked.
“To help answer the questions about the height requirement: the male host is over 6’3”,” a producer named Paul clarified.
“Why does she have to be Caucasian?” another woman inquired.
“That’s what the current roll [sic] is casting for,” an anonymous show representative responded.
Another person replied:
Are you guys seriously questioning why they are asking for a specific type of person to be cast for this role? That is just absurd. If they had called for an Asian or Latina female 5’3” or shorter would you all be so vocal about it? Just because this is a local show and the casting call is through FB you think it’s ok to turn this into a race thing? Would you be questioning why they need a Caucasian female if this was for a movie role? I really wanted to keep my mouth shut but the stupidity of that question got me fired up.
The rest of the page is dusted with the cries of women too short and too non-white to get work in this town (Minneapolis), mixed with a few cries that the listing was just fine.
In any event, the listing has been changed to remove the Caucasian requirement: it is now just “Female co-host For Luxury Product Placement.” Apply now!
Update: The advertisement seems to have been removed.
Contact the author at joanna@jezebel.com.
Image via NBC/screengrab