The 2022 Super Bowl Halftime Show
The 2022 Super Bowl Halftime Show made history with Hip Hop being included for the first time which was made possible with the NFL's recent partnership with Jay-Z. While a lot of goo came from this, there were also some controversies from these anti establishment icons which people see as them settling and there was Eminem taking the knee which the NFL allegedly told him not to do.
The media voiced there different opinions on the matter while covering the event. Zerlina from MSNBC discusses the racial controversies surrounding the Super Bowl. She comments, "While the performance was terrific, it doesn't absolve the NFL of its many systemic failures or change the fact that its still a predominantly black league with a pretty bad track record of racial equality." While Jay-Z partnership was meant to call for real change, she called out the NFL for still not letting Kaepernick play.
Fox news on the other hand did not comment on any of the racial aspects regarding the performance or the NFL as a whole, but instead chose to call out a different aspect to the Super Bowl: maskless celebrities. Gutfeld slammed the Hollywood elite for not following covid protocols established by the LA Public Health which they outlined that all attendees will be required to wear masks. He called them all hypocrites as children in LA are still required to mask up in schools with him even making a comment regarding race stating, "It raises the question: with their faces covered how will the kids learn to judge each other by race." It seems MSNBC praised the Hip Hop community for their achievement while also calling out the NFL for racial equality while Fox is calling out Hollywood and the left on masks and race.
MSNBC:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VKYYeOwsY5A
Fox:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D35YMuD3DJ4
I enjoyed the half time show. I think it is a step in the right direction. Like you said it by no means makes up for all of the missteps of the NFL but they are moving in the right direction. I was shocked to see that Fox News did not have more to say about Eminem kneeling during the performance. I remember thinking when it happened that some of the reporters on Fox News would be in an uproar about it because they had such a negative reaction to Kaepernick kneeling when it originally happened.
ReplyDeleteInteresting post. It seems that the halftime show brought up a number of valid criticisms. On the surface, the issue simply appears to be controversy over the choice of artists and music style. I've heard many people diss the lineup and claim past shows had better artists. Once you go deeper though, the hypocrisy of the NFL in regards to profiting off of black athletes and artists while not addressing racial tensions and the lack of Covid-19 protocols clearly are more important points to address. This was an insightful read.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with this comment. Many of the major sports leagues profit off of Black and brown men (and women) but then taking issue when it comes to expressing the phrase "Black lives matter." I think it shows a double standard and also how the companies use them to profit but don't actually look out for racial injustice or do anything to stop it.
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