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NFL Wants $1.5 Million, Public Apology From M.I.A. For Flipping Bird During Super Bowl
By
Jen Chung
Published Sep 19, 2013
Modified Sep 19, 2013
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By
Jen Chung
Published Sep 19, 2013
Modified Sep 19, 2013
Share
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Since most of us can't afford 2014 Super Bowl tickets, we'll be watching it on TV for the commercials and the halftime show. But did you know that the NFL is actually still fighting with 2012 halftime show performer M.I.A. for her hand gesture while she backed up Madonna?
The Hollywood Reporter has a long, fascinating feature about how the league is trying to extract a public apology as well as $1.5 million from the singer for giving the middle finger and mouthing "I don't give a shit" right at the cameraman.
The NFL and M.I.A. have been locked in a legal battle for 18 months, but now her lawyer Howard King says, "She is going to go public with an explanation of how ridiculous it was for the NFL and its fans to devote such furor to this incident, while ignoring the genocide occurring in her home country and several other countries, topics she frequently speaks to."
The NFL claims M.I.A. disrespected its brand, but King argues, "The NFL's claimed reputation for wholesomeness is hilarious, in light of the weekly felonies committed by its stars, the bounties placed by coaches on opposing players, the homophobic and racist comments uttered by its players, the complete disregard for the health of players and the premature deaths that have resulted from same, and the raping of public entities ready to sacrifice public funds to attract teams." OUCH.
And King, who pointed out that NBC and FCC didn't take any action against M.I.A., didn't stop, telling THR, "Until now, we had reluctantly remained quiet in the hopes of not becoming subject to the whims of 28 rich NFL owners who wanted to crush this brown, outspoken young lady, especially since they are making her life miserable for the cost of a 30-second spot in one of this weekend's secondary games. But ultimately, we could not be forced into the type of public apology demanded by the NFL." Oddly enough, in the wake of the controversy, even Madonna was disappointed in M.I.A.'s actions.
The NFL makes around $3.2 billion a year just from the broadcasting rights to its games.
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M.I.A.
middle finger
nfl
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Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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