Dating equals ratings for "The Bachelor," "The Bachelorette" and other reality TV offspring of Chuck Barris' groundbreaking '70s hit, "The Dating Game."
Although considered the tamest of reality TV formats -- they're known in the insurance industry as "walk and talks" -- dating shows traffic in emotion, and emotion can lead to lawsuits -- especially when the participants are not hired actors.
"When you're underwriting (dating shows), you don't want something that is mean-spirited," says Seaman. "That's what you have to watch out for. If the goal of the show is that someone is humiliated, it's probably not something we're going to be too interested in."
Seaman says the key to successful dating shows lies in documenting the risk before the first red rose is offered.
"You work with the production companies to make sure they have the proper waivers in place so the participants know what the risks are," he says. "You want to be sure that the participants acknowledge that they are participating of their own free will and that sometimes there are risks involved."
Such as a broken heart ... or a bruised ego.