SNL Mutes Audience’s Cursing During Ego Nwodim’s ‘Weekend Update’ Segment
A “Weekend Update” segment took an unexpected turn when Saturday Night Live cast member Ego Nwodim prompted the audience to respond, resulting in a live swear on television.
Nwodim, 37, joined Colin Jost and Michael Che during the “Weekend Update” segment on Saturday, April 5, to propose herself as the next comedian for the White House Correspondents Association dinner. This was a nod to recent reports that comedian Amber Ruffin had been withdrawn as a performer for the dinner slated for Saturday, April 26.
In her comedic pitch, Nwodim featured a call-and-response segment with the SNL audience. “Cory Booker out here with his filibuster — shoot, I’ve had my fill of busters. ’Cause these men ain’t what?” Nwodim said, extending her mic to the crowd, which responded in jubilant unison, “S—!”
Nwodim, Jost, and Che were taken aback by the crowd’s reaction, with Nwodim quipping they would be “fined” for the gaffe. “Y’all gonna have to pay for that,” she told the audience as the “Update” hosts burst into laughter behind her. “[SNL creator Lorne Michaels] gonna be mad at y’all.”
As reported by Deadline, the profanity made it through censors in East Coast broadcasts and on Peacock, but was bleeped in Pacific and Mountain time zones. In subsequent reruns on television and a version shared via YouTube, the audience’s exclamation was completely muted.
According to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) guidelines, there are seven words that are forbidden on public television, specifically: s—, piss, f—, c—, c—sucker, motherf—–, t—. This also encompasses variations of these phrases.
“Since obscenity is not safeguarded by the First Amendment, it is banned on cable, satellite, and broadcast TV and radio,” the FCC guidelines state. “However, the same standards for indecency and profanity do not apply to cable, satellite TV and satellite radio as they are subscription-based services.”
The FCC clarifies that “Broadcasting obscene content is strictly forbidden by law at all times. Indecent and profane content are not allowed on broadcast TV and radio between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m., when there is a reasonable possibility that children may be in the audience.”
Regarding the enforcement of these regulations, the FCC notes, “If an investigation is deemed necessary and the FCC determines a station has violated its rules, it possesses the authority to revoke a station license, impose a fine, or issue a warning or admonishment.”
SNL’s episode on April 5 included Jack Black as the host, with Elton John and Brandi Carlile as musical guests.
