Philly’s Shawn Bullard to dump dates via text on ‘Match Made in Heaven’

Philly real-estate developer Shawn Bullard will soon serve as the first black man to star in a dating-centric reality TV show since Flavor Flav, subsequently making TV history in the process. Incidentally, he'll also be the first dating show contestant to break up with his dates exclusively through text message.

Bullard will star in WeTV's Match Made in Heaven, the network's first attempt at the reality dating game format. Entertainment Weekly reports that on the show's premiere, Bullard will provide the ladies of the show with a white cell phone which he will use to communicate with them further, up to and including their final dismissal.

Via Entertainment Weekly:

Bullard gives each contestant a white cell phone. Once he's chosen who will continue on the show in hopes of winning his heart, he sends text messages to the cast. Each contestant is either safe, ditched, or asked to meet for further conversation.

Essentially, the show focuses on Bullard (a millionaire) trying to find his true love in the same vein as ABC's The Bachelor, but with a much harsher version of the famous red roses handed out on that program. But, as EW notes, the text message breakup still doesn't match the cruelty of ghosting your date and never speaking to them again.

Still, though, it is a blemish on an otherwise progressive show — or at least as progressive a show as one about dating can be. The Bachelor, after all, went 19 seasons without ever casting a black man as the lead, and Match Made In Heaven broke that trend immediately.

Daily News reporter Molly Eichel, in fact, recently spoke to Bullard about that facet of his experience:

When I asked Bullard, the operator of Watchmen Property Management and Konkrete Investments, why he thought it was important to be the first "black bachelor," he told me it was precisely because there hasn't been one before him. 

"For me, it was a great opportunity to show America that men of color, black men, are educated, are successful, we know how to court a woman," Bullard said. "Especially in the moment of Michael Brown and 'I can't breathe.' We need a different of type of a role model in the black community. To be successful, we don't have to be a baller, or an entertainer. We can be CEOs, entrepreneurs. I cherish the moment to be able to express that on the show."

And, of course, that is true: Bullard's presence in the national conversation is important, even if it's only in reference to pop culture. Unfortunately, though, knowing "how to court a woman" probably doesn't revolve around devaluing her emotions to the point where it seems appropriate to terminate your relationship with her via an SMS message.

Match Made in Heaven premieres Wednesday, Feb. 4 at 8 p.m. on WeTV.

[EW]