M.I.A. has flipped off millions of global viewers who were watching this year’s Super Bowl coverage. She made the gesture during a performance of Madonna’s new single, Give Me All Your Luvin., and also uttered an expletive, although it wasn’t very audible.
NBC and the NFL quickly issued statements. apologising and calling the moment a “spontaneous gesture”, which can also go down alongside the comment “wardrobe malfunction” from a few years ago
“We apologize for the inappropriate gesture that aired during halftime. It was a spontaneous gesture that our delay system caught late.”
The NFL’s statement said, “There was a failure in NBC’s delay system. The obscene gesture in the performance was completely inappropriate, very disappointing, and we apologize to our fans.” And then back to NBC saying, “The NFL hired the talent and produced the halftime show. Our system was late to obscure the inappropriate gesture and we apologize to our viewers.”
Will this be played up as much as Janet Jackson’s wardrobe blunder from a few years ago? Probably not.
Watch: M.I.A. Gives Finger At Super Bowl Halftime
