"I don't engage with them" — The Golden Bachelorette star Joan on dealing with trolls

The debut season of The Golden Bachelorette concluded on Wednesday, November 13, 2024, with Joan Vassos tying the knot with Chock. After the finale aired and their relationship was made public, Joan and Chock faced the viewers' opinions and received negative feedback— something they addressed in an interview with Entertainment Weekly, published November 14, 2024.

Joan Vassos and her two remaining suitors, Chock and Guy, entered the finale, vying to get their fairytale ending. However, Joan could only tie the knot with one, ending the hopes of the other.

After Chock met with Joan's family and professed his love to her, Joan was convinced he was the one. She eventually broke up with Guy and accepted Chock's proposal.

In the interview, Joan and Chock discussed how they dealt with haters online.

"I don't engage with them, I try to ignore them. But it's kind of human nature — 95 good ones and five bad ones, the five bad ones are the ones that I remember," Joan said.

The bachelorette's partner, Chock, echoed her sentiments. However, his strategy was to avoid reading comments altogether. The 60-year-old insurance executive from Kansas mentioned that some netizens crossed all limits and left "crazy" comments, however, tackling every single troll was beyond his capability.

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"I just give them a pass" — The Golden Bachelorette's Joan chooses not to engage with haters

Joan and Chock's relationship was revealed after The Golden Bachelorette aired its finale. Joan severed ties with Guy and chose Chock as her life partner. While the 61-year-old private school administrator celebrated her decision and was content with her choice, fans of the show had mixed reviews about it.

Netizens took to social media to express their opinions on the finale. While some congratulated Joan, others claimed she made a wrong choice. At the same time, many harshly criticized her new relationship. While speaking with Entertainment Weekly, Joan revealed her take on the public's review of her love life and journey. She confessed people could be "very unkind" when they were not "face-to-face" with someone.

The Golden Bachelorette star said she wanted to read the comments to engage with those who resonated with her story or had "lost a loved one" like she lost her ex-husband.

"I really want to have a conversation with those people," she said.

Joan claimed the fans who thanked her or congratulated her deserved her reciprocation. However, she struggled to respond to the positive comments because "sprinkled in with those messages are the mean ones."

Although The Golden Bachelorette star tried not to engage with those comments, she could not avoid feeling hurt after encountering one. Nonetheless, Joan said she was "trying to get better about that."

"And like Chock said, something could be going on in these people's lives and they're just angry, so I give them a pass," she added.

Chock agreed with Joan's perspective. He mentioned that "the show does educate you." During his time on The Golden Bachelorette, he realized that even if he was "the best person in the world," people would have negative things to say about him. He admitted that he disliked that, however, he also stated that he could not "solve hate."

Consequently, Chock mentioned it was better to "just not even read [the comments]." He added that since it was impossible to "solve somebody's frustration" he chose not to react. The star also praised Joan for responding to those who contacted her to discuss "similar issues, pancreatic cancer, those type of things."

"She's very good at responding to those people," he said.

The Golden Bachelorette star explained that one always ran "that risk of seeing negative comments."

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Episodes of The Golden Bachelorette are available to stream on Hulu.