Before now, I’ve really never paid close attention to Mayim Bialik, but has she always been this testy? It feels like she’s on her back foot a lot these days, ever since her fame rose dramatically because of the Jeopardy controversies. Right now, Mayim and Ken Jennings are taking over Jeopardy hosting for the rest of 2021, following Mike Richards’ departure. Mayim and Ken are seen – by Sony executives – as steady hands who know how the show operates. Both both Mayim and Ken are problematic, as we’ve discussed. One of Mayim’s biggest controversies to date is her questionable history on vaccines. Back in 2012, she absolutely indicated that she was an anti-vaxxer, and in an YouTube video last year, she spoke cryptically about how Americans receive “too many vaccines” but she and her children will all get the Covid vaccine and flu shot. Well, Mayim has been sent out to hype her Jeopardy gig and NBC News asked the question about vaccines. Some highlights from NBC News:
On all of the Jeopardy shenanigans: “To be honest, there’s been a lot unfolding over the last month, much of which the public knows about and a lot of which the public doesn’t necessarily need to know about. What I can say is that when Mike [Richards] stepped down as host, what I said was, “How can I help?” because I already had been welcomed into the “Jeopardy!” family as someone who was going to be doing prime-time stuff and the college “Jeopardy!” specials. We’re kind of in that sort of mode: trying to get some stability and consistency back for our wonderful staff and crew, many of whom have been there for decades without any sort of drama or turmoil. That’s what I think Ken and I are both focusing on right now.
Whether she believes the concerns about Mike Richards were valid: ”I think for sure there’s validity to the concerns. I think we’re all kind of dealing with how much [does] the court of public opinion play a role in decision-making, and again, I think that’s something we’re all trying to figure out as an industry. Like I said, my interest right now is for the viewers to not think much about what’s going in terms of hosting, meaning I’d like to be as much of a neutral to pleasant presence as host of what’s going to be a lot of episodes between now and several months from now. I really don’t want to make it about me, because it’s not. I don’t think anyone who guest-hosted was trying to make it about them, per se.
Whether her views about vaccines have been mischaracterized: “Again, this is kind of court of public opinion. I made a very public video on my YouTube channel [uploaded on Oct. 1], which has over a million subscribers, saying that my children are vaccinated. We were all, at that point, going to get vaccinated for Covid; we are all [now] vaccinated for Covid. At the time when I wrote a book [the 2012 parenting guide “Beyond the Sling”], when my kids were young, they had not received all their vaccines. That’s absolutely true.
Wait, what?? “It doesn’t feel good when you’re a liberal who’s accused by liberals of not being liberal enough or when you’re a feminist who’s accused by other feminists of not being feminist enough because I support breast-feeding. I think there’s a lot of drama circulating, but I’ve been pretty clear, as I said, especially very recently, about us and vaccines. I don’t think there’s a lot of confusion there by people who are doing the appropriate, timely research.”
When we talked about Mayim’s history on vaccines, a lot of commenters pointed out that she was absolutely a full-throated anti-vaxxer back in the day (2011/12), with tons of blog posts on the subject of “choosing her own vaccine schedule” and “believing there are too many vaccines and she alone knows this because she did the research!” Even in her YouTube clarification video last year, she seemed to be talking out of both sides of her mouth, trying to leave enough room so that pro-vaxx people would be satisfied yet anti-vaxxers would know that she was one of them. I agree that it would probably be better for her to try a different tack – acknowledge her old problematic statements (all of which are a matter of public record), apologize for not doing better and talking about her feelings now about vaccines. This kind of knee-jerk testiness about “liberals are attacking me, feminists are attacking me” is pretty lame on her part.
I wonder if media outlets are going to ask her about the Harvey Weinstein op-ed catastrophe next? She did apologize for that… after she claimed liberals were out to get her.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Jeopardy’s social media.
Reading this and learning about her defensive reactions make me dislike her. And that’s a shame, because she is really good as the host of Jeopardy.
I find her a little too condescending as host. But that’s only my opinion.
Ugh. The defenses I see of this woman even on the comments on this site…
Thank you for pointing out her recent anti-vax foolery and again reminding all the folks screaming sexism about her not getting the job that she’s the sort of “feminist” that shamed SA victims publicly and repeatedly.
Surely the thing feminists were upset with was not ‘support of breastfeeding’ and more the ‘those actresses were asking for it’ commentary… way to try and shift perception AND make feminists look as extreme as conservatives like to believe.
She’s very good at playing both sides I see.
Her attachment parenting ideals have been criticized by feminists too…and rightly so. The objection isn’t to breastfeeding. It’s to her being so devoted to natural childbirth that she was willing to give airtime to the idea that babies who die during the process might not be intended to survive.
She has a history of being viscously cruel to mothers who do not (for whatever reason) breastfeed or who chose to parent in any other way than her very extreme version of attachment parenting. It’s laughable that she’s interpreting her very well deserved criticism as “they hate me because I breastfeed!”
And quel fucking surprise, bitch was divorced within a couple years. Her whole all-consuming mommy thing alarmed me in 2012 as a CF woman (I’m 37) and post-2017 (I believe that’s when she did that horrific victim-blaming op ed re: Weinstein) she absolutely infuriates me.
Vaccine or not, she still sucks.
Her kids are vaccinated for covid…and what else?
I don’t buy that she’s really changed. People who concentrate on how hurt they feel when they’re criticized rather than who they’ve hurt usually don’t.
Yeah she still is not saying that her kids are fully vaccinated. She’s avoiding it.
Exactly this. She can’t stop making herself out to be a victim, and she can’t ever own her past behavior and statements. How refreshing it would be for someone to say “I was wrong.” I would even take “I thought I was right at the time, but I grew and educated myelf.” But she’s trying to pretend that her past statements were not awful.
She’s a bully to other women in my opinion, and that’s the worst. And pretending to be attacked by those crazy feminists (sarcasm) is really disgusting.
She almost said she was being canceled. Whatever. She’s probably not going to get the permanent job.
Shes a good example of a person who is smart in one arena thinking they are smart in all arenas.
Exactly. She is very accomplished in her education, and it was nice to see a child star stop their career and do that, but that doesn’t mean she’s an expert in all areas.
She very clearly was anti-vax, but I’m just going to say I’m glad she and her kids got the covid vaccine, and I’m hoping the kids get protection from other stuff as well.
Apparently that PhD in neurobiology makes her an expert in EVERYTHING.
She is very testy actually, her old blog was filled with defensive, nasty posts, as well as anti-vaxx and anti-women posts, but I digress…She has always been this person, its just that now more people are catching on.
I read somewhere yesterday -maybe on Twitter – that “cancel culture” is just people who think of themselves as liberals finding out they were conservatives all along.
Victim blaming rape survivors because it never happened to you- pretty awful take.
She is highly problematic in another way: She is using her platform to sell horrible, potentially dangerous, rip-off “brain health” supplements. I am a neuroscientist (happy to send verification if needed, CB!). The ingredients are a complete sham and it’s super expensive. In the marketing she calls herself a neuroscientist, despite never actually working as one. Sure, she managed to scrape by on a degree, but never has she worked as a neuroscientist. So, she is both an antivaxx looney and a scam artist poser. And this supplement’s ads run like crazy on Jeopardy, apparently (I don’t watch, just have been told by neurotwitter as we rant about her).
I was a huge fan of hers, I loved Blossom. When she got famous on Big Bang I started following her and I loved that she a “scientist” until she started talking about being anti-vaxx and stuff like that and well there went my interest in her. Now she’s shilling supplements?? UGH!! Big NO from me
Agree! Blossom was a big part of my childhood and I actually thought it was cool that she decided to pursue science. It’s so utterly disappointing to see that she’s using that “scientist” cred to deceive people and spread misinformation – in part for her own financial gain.
Yup, not a scientist if you don’t actually practice and work in the science field. She simply has a degree in neuroscience. That she uses… to sell sham pills. And be condescending to others.
100% 100% 100% The neuro community is really up in arms about it but alas, nothing we can do. Literally the ad says “Mayim Bialik: Neuroscientist/Actress”. Rage.
She is *also* problematic because she suggested that dressing modestly was a good way to avoid being raped. This was after the Weinstein case broke. UGH. She’s always holier than thou, and she’s always just so damn wrong.
She does have a holier than thou attitude. My biggest problem is she starts from a place that’s somewhat sensible:
– do research on vaccines – nothing wrong with that as long as it means taking to your doctor(s) and not surfing FB til you find something wacky
– don’t leave yourself vulnerable – I have a daughter and I would never victim blame her, but at the same time I advise her to stay sober, always take friends with her, call me for a ride anytime, etc
– eat healthy and take supplements if needed and discussed with a doctor
But then she goes off the deep end
– vaccine research ends up being reading fringe sites
– safety shifts into victim blaming
– health becomes an opportunity to shill
So if you are a fan and not careful, you can go off the deep end before yo7 know what happened because she lures you in. It sucks.
So….she’s smart and everyone else is stupid and how dare we even question her!
Her awful sexual assault comments will never be ondone to me. They are, IMO, more problematic than her anti-vax stuff, which is bad enough, and then the defensiveness and ‘they’re out to get me’ attitude after getting called out is just gross.
Bialik is what I call a dicktim. Acts like a huge dick, claims to be a victim when people push back on the dickish part.
I like the term “crybully”
I won’t watch anything with her because she’s an asshole. She’s got so many ridiculous parent shaming BS quotes floating around out there, it’s not even worth listing them!
This whole thing is infuriating. There is literally NOBODY ELSE that can host this damn show? Why do they keep recycling the same 2-3 names over and over knowing that people don’t like the choices??
I like Miyam and I am so glad she and her kids got vaccinated.
I recently read a list of bad faith arguments and…yup, yes, these would be there.
Has she apologized to Ariana Grande yet for attacking her talent and her appearance? She better be lucky that Ariana’s fans aren’t like the B-Hive or those dreadful Barbz.
She’s odd and not in a genius odd kind of way.
I’m too old for Blossom but liked her character on Big Bang. That doesn’t mean I like her.
I’ll say this: There are plenty of people who have changed their minds about the vaccine and many were too far gone to get it but maybe some will become more enlightened as time goes on and more of them DIE.
Now, as a retired military woman, I’ve been vaccinated for things most civilians never even think about like Anthrax (THE WORST) and Typhoid Fever, Yellow Fever, Smallpox twice, something that was supposed to help in case I got Malaria and so on and so on. I even had to have Rabies shots once, so, obviously I’m not anti-vax.
Miyam does come across as feeling she’s above us all but I remember her being on the short-lived t.v. show of her loony friend, Kirstie Alley. Aren’t they BOTH Scientologists?
I hope they are all vaccinated but saying you are doesn’t mean you are.
Mayim is not a Scientologist, she is Jewish. She has written a lot about her faith on her blog, which I used to read. It’s been a few years. She grates.
Sanctimonious twit.
The phrase “Educated Fool” comes to mind whenever I read about her.
That’s nice.
She irritates the fuck out of me for various reasons, all listed above.
I’ve been side eyeing her for a while, since that offensive victim blaming, virtuous woman op-ed. She has been cagey about vaccines when her kids were young, and just had this whole mom influencer thing going on and TMI with her family life like sharing personal details on co-sleeping and extended breast feeding . She probably got the Covid vaccine because she is intelligent enough to see how transmissible the Delta variant is, and mostly because she wants to work and get a check. She can’t be in the studio unvaccinated and her kids are safer at school with the vaccines.
I worked for her a few years ago – can confirm she has always been this testy and this much of an ego-maniac. The way she speaks to and treats people is utterly shocking. She is very much a “white feminist” in the sense that she only wants what benefits her and her kids, and to heck with everyone else. Celebs are so tricky – almost never as nice as their carefully crafted “public persona”. The stories I could tell you……