Big Brother 24 runner-up Monte Taylor has implied that the season's winner, Taylor Hale, didn't fully deserve her win, but Joseph Abdin is defending the legitimacy of Taylor's victory. Taylor, a beauty queen and stylist from Detroit, beat Monte in an 8-1 jury vote during the season finale. She and Monte had a brief fling in the Big Brother house, but since the season finished, she and Joseph have grown closer and are watching the season together and sharing their thoughts and reactions on social media.
Monte, whose relationship with Taylor went through many ups and downs in the game, has suggested that the jurors who awarded her the win may have been influenced by other parties. In several of his post-game interviews, Monte implied, while being careful not to claim outright, that the jurors were swayed toward Taylor's direction. He didn't specifically name those he believes influenced the jury, but many fans have speculated that he thinks the show's production team had their thumb on the scale and worked to ensure a Taylor victory because she was the most popular houseguest on the season.
Why Joseph Abdin Is Defending Taylor Hale's Win
Joseph, who was a member of the BB24 jury, has countered Monte's insinuations. In an interview with Benny J. Adams, Joseph specifically addressed Monte's suggestions about production interference. When asked for his thoughts, Joseph dismissed Monte's claims: "I had no intuition that production wanted Taylor to win. Taylor rightfully earned that win, completely." Joseph described himself and the jury as "all honestly deliberating" about the finalists' respective games. Joseph went on to explain that Taylor's victory wasn't because of production's influence but, rather, that she bested Monte in the Final Two because she had superior jury management and stronger social bonds with the jurors than he did. Joseph and several of the other jurors valued those aspects of Taylor's game over Monte's competition wins and big moves and thus awarded her the victory.
Though Joseph claims the jurors weren't influenced by production, it is possible that a juror or two might have been made aware of the tenor of the response to the season during their exit press with journalists covering the show, as many questions sent into jurors focused on the negative treatment that fan favorite Taylor received during the game. However, Monte is almost certainly incorrect in insinuating that she might not have won without some sort of outside influence. Not only did Taylor beat him in an almost unanimous vote, but she also had one of the greatest Final Two performances in the show's history, topping it off with an already iconic speech that would have likely converted any potential doubters.
There is a case to be made that outside influence on the jurors should be better vetted by CBS, but in this scenario, it seems that Monte is reluctant to acknowledge the true reasons why he lost the game. He could have taken a more gracious approach in the post-finale fallout, but by claiming foul play, he's working to delegitimize the rightful winner of the season. Hopefully, he clarifies or recants his insinuations before too long and acknowledges Taylor as the winner of Big Brother 24.
Source: Benny J. Adams/Twitter