Tina Fey Asks for '30 Rock' Episodes Featuring Blackface to Be Removed from Streaming Platforms
30 Rock is pulling episodes featuring Blackface from streaming platforms.
Tina Fey wrote a letter apologizing for the pain the episodes have caused, and said she doesn't want any comedy loving kids to be "stung by their ugliness."
Tina Fey has issued a letter revealing that all episodes of 30 Rock featuring Blackface (disturbingly, there's more than one) are being removed from streaming platforms immediately. According to Vulture, the episodes in question will no longer be available to stream on Hulu and Amazon Prime, will no longer air on television, and will no longer be available to purchase on iTunes and Google Play.
"As we strive to do the work and do better in regards to race in America, we believe that these episodes featuring actors in race-changing makeup are best taken out of circulation," Fey wrote in a letter to platforms. "I understand now that ‘intent' is not a free pass for white people to use these images. I apologize for pain they have caused. Going forward, no comedy-loving kid needs to stumble on these tropes and be stung by their ugliness. I thank NBCUniversal for honoring this request."
A total of four 30 Rock episodes will be pulled, including two that feature Jane Krakowski’s Jenna in Blackface which already appear to be unavailable. Universal is also removing a live episode from Season 6 which features Jon Hamm in Blackface, as well as the East Coast version of a live episode from Season 5. It's unclear why this particular episode is being removed, but Vulture speculates that it could be to do with a fake Fox News chyron referencing Trump's racist birther conspiracy theories about President Obama.
As Vulture notes, this news comes amid HBO Max taking down Gone With the Wind from their platform, and as Amazon is considering removing/editing The Dukes of Hazzard due to racist Confederate flag imagery.
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