ICYMI

Bonus: How “The Traitors” Is Rebranding Villains

Colton Underwood wants the Tom Sandoval treatment. It’s not working.

View Transcript

Episode Notes

On today’s bonus episode, host Kate Lindsay and producer Vic Whitley-Berry discuss The Traitors, and how previously-disliked celebrities have used the show to rehab their image. While Tom Sandoval was able to transform from “evil cheater” to “a love-to-hate-him buffoon,” Colton Underwood’s journey has not been so smooth. Allegations of stalking have made it much harder to forgive the former Bachelor, and it doesn’t help that he refuses to address it, while still trying to sell us a good-guy narrative.

This episode is for Slate Plus members. Join now to unlock it—plus other exclusive bonus episodes of ICYMI and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the ICYMI show page on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/icymiplus for access wherever you listen.

This podcast is produced by Vic Whitley-Berry, Daisy Rosario, and Kate Lindsay.

About the Show

Join Candice Lim and Kate Lindsay twice a week as they gaze deep into the online abyss—and tell you what’s gazing back. All episodes

Hosts

  • Kate Lindsay is the co-host of ICYMI, Slate’s podcast about internet culture. She also writes the newsletter Embedded, and her work has appeared in The Atlantic, The New York Times, Bustle, and GQ.

  • Vic Whitley-Berry is the producer of ICYMI.