Register

    Fey asks to pull “30 Rock” episodes that featured blackface

    By SHOOTUpdated:No Comments1358 Views
    In this April 18, 2018 file photo, Tina Fey attends the Tribeca Film Festival world premiere of "Love, Gilda" in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)

    By David Bauder, Media Writer

    NEW YORK (AP) --

    At the request of co-creator Tina Fey, four episodes of the comedy "30 Rock" are being removed from circulation because they featured characters performing in blackface.

    The series aired on NBC from 2006 to 2013, but episodes are still being shown in television syndication and on streaming services including Hulu, Amazon Prime, iTunes and Peacock.

    Fey, who also starred as Liz Lemon in the series about the backstage world of a television show, said in a note to distributors that "I understand now that 'intent' is not a free pass for white people to use these images."

    "I apologize for the pain they have caused," Fey wrote. "Going forward, no comedy-loving kid really needs to stumble on these tropes and be stung by their ugliness."

    The elimination of the "30 Rock" episodes is the latest example of how the societal reckoning triggered by protests against police treatment of Black people has hit the entertainment world. They include the cancellation of the long-running TV show "Cops" and temporary removal of "Gone With the Wind" from the HBO Max service.

    Two of the four eliminated "30 Rock" episodes originally aired in 2010, with the others first shown in 2008 and 2010. They include the East Coast version of an episode first shown live. Series regular Jane Krakowski and guest star Jon Hamm appeared in blackface.

    The 2012 episode with Hamm also included "Tonight" show host Jimmy Fallon as a guest. Fallon, who did not appear in such makeup on "30 Rock," apologized last month after online circulation of an earlier "Saturday Night Live" skit where he wore blackface to impersonate Chris Rock.

    Tags:30 RockblackfaceracismTina Fey



    Ex-OpenAI engineer who raised legal concerns about the technology he helped build has died

    Saturday, December 21, 2024
    Suchir Balaji poses for a photo in Hawaii in 2018. Balaji was a former OpenAI engineer and whistleblower who died in November 2024. (Balaji Ramamurthy via AP)

    Suchir Balaji, a former OpenAI engineer and whistleblower who helped train the artificial intelligence systems behind ChatGPT and later said he believed those practices violated copyright law, has died, according to his parents and San Francisco officials. He was 26.

    Balaji worked at OpenAI for nearly four years before quitting in August. He was well-regarded by colleagues at the San Francisco company, where a co-founder this week called him one of OpenAI's strongest contributors who was essential to developing some of its products.

    "We are devastated to learn of this incredibly sad news and our hearts go out to Suchir's loved ones during this difficult time," said a statement from OpenAI.

    Balaji was found dead in his San Francisco apartment on Nov. 26 in what police said "appeared to be a suicide. No evidence of foul play was found during the initial investigation." The city's chief medical examiner's office confirmed the manner of death to be suicide.

    His parents Poornima Ramarao and Balaji Ramamurthy said they are still seeking answers, describing their son as a "happy, smart and brave young man" who loved to hike and recently returned from a trip with friends.

    Balaji grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and first arrived at the fledgling AI research lab for a 2018 summer internship while studying computer science at the University of California, Berkeley. He returned a few years later to work at OpenAI, where one of his first projects, called WebGPT, helped pave the way for ChatGPT.

    "Suchir's contributions to this project were essential, and it wouldn't have succeeded without him," said OpenAI co-founder John Schulman in a social media post memorializing Balaji. Schulman, who recruited Balaji to his team, said what... Read More

    MySHOOT Profiles


    Add A Comment