Weekend Update
Weekend Update is a Saturday Night Live sketch and satirical news program that comments on and parodies current events. It is the show's longest-running recurring sketch, having been on since the show's first broadcast, and is typically presented in the middle of the show immediately after the first musical performance. Historically, one or two of the players are cast in the role of news anchor, presenting gag news items based on current events and acting as hosts for occasional editorials, commentaries, or other performances by other cast members or guests. In modern times, dedicated anchors are chosen among writing staff, often lead writers, in lieu of cast or featured players. Chevy Chase has said that Weekend Update – which he started as anchor in 1975 – paved the way for comedic news shows like The Daily Show and The Colbert Report.[1]
For the 2008 Thursday night specials, see Saturday Night Live Weekend Update Thursday.Controversies[edit]
Norm MacDonald[edit]
In the mid-1990s, Former Weekend Update host Norm MacDonald was fired from SNL for tackling taboo topics including the highly controversial 1994 murder trial of O.J. Simpson. Macdonald's comedic approach to the sensitive subject matter often crossed lines for some viewers and network executives.[34] Don Ohlmeyer, former president of NBC's West Coast division, was a close friend of Simpson, and took great offense to Macdonald's jokes, ultimately firing Macdonald for his poor taste in comedy during the 1995 season.[35]
Macdonald was immensely popular with audiences, leading to questions about his abrupt removal. Controversy broke out about the comedic freedom regarding sensitive topics highlighting the complex dynamic between the network and talent.[36]
Leslie Jones[edit]
In May 2014, Leslie Jones was criticized for a string of slave jokes. She made a joke about Lupita Nyong’o, most well-known for her role as Nakia in Black Panther, being named People magazine’s most beautiful person, saying that during the slave days she herself would’ve been the most sought after, making comments about how she would have been paired with the best guy on that plantation and would have been the number one pick in the “slave draft.” On Twitter she responded in defending her joke and how she was sad she has to defend herself to the black community.[37]
Michael Che[edit]
On December 16, 2023 on the annual Weekend Update Christmas episode, where Che and Jost joke swap, Che faced backlash on his “racist jokes” that were pointed towards Beyoncé, Coretta Scott King, and Obama. The specific joke that had to do with the popular singer Beyoncé was written by Che for Jost to say, and the joke implied that the star "looked so white" that Jost was finally attracted to her. [38]
He was criticized by some for making a joke about Beyoncé having a lighter complexion and blonde hair for her tour, saying that she was looking white. He also made a joke in which he said Scarlett Johansson, the wife of co-host Jost, was a better black widow than Coretta Scott King, poking fun at Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination. Lastly, he compared former president Barack Obama to an African Dodo bird.[39]
On January 31, 2021 Che was accused of being transphobic for his joke about Joe Biden’s executive order that reversed Trump’s ban on transgender people serving in the military. He joked that Biden was calling it “don't ask, don't tuck” which is a reference to the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, which banned gays from serving in the military from 1993 to 2010. Many trans activists criticized the joke made and called Che out for the “insensitive” comment.[40]
While Che has had his share of controversies, in an interview for CBS News on May 15, 2022, Che explained "I do think that controversy brings people to talking. And I think as long as people are talking, it's not all that bad."[41]
Che has received a lot of backlash for his problematic and controversial jokes, but is often credited for his brilliance and how he has been able to take a broad departure from SNL's much more problematic and racist past while breathing new life into the sketch comedy show as the first black comedian to be a head writer of the show. [42]
Although they are criticized by people for their controversial jokes, many people stand by the jokes and the hosts/writers as controversy causes conversations to start.