Super Bowl LII (53) took place on Sunday, February 3, 2019. The game was one of the slowest progressing and lowest scoring Super Bowl games in history. Following the first and second quarter, Pepsi’s annual Super Bowl Halftime show is most viewers highly anticipated part of the game. This year, Maroon 5, joined by Travis Scott, and Atlanta’s very own, Big Boi were set to perform.
During his performance, Adam Levine, Maroon 5’s lead singer took off his shirt to expose his chest. Many of the viewers really enjoyed that part of the performance but his actions also leave many that are familiar with the 2004 Nipple Gate curious to see what follows.
Super Bowl XXXVIII (38) took place in 2004 with Janet Jackson featuring Justin Timberlake performing during the Pepsi Halftime show. The show was also dubbed Nipple Gate because of the actions that occurred during the performance.
During the performance, a wardrobe malfunction occurred when Justin Timberlake accidentally ripped a part of Janet Jackson’s outfit causing her nipples to be exposed. Her breast were only exposed for half a second before Jackson covered her jacket over her chest. Though being an accident, the incident was ridiculed both domestically and internationally, even talks about the incident being a planned stunt surfaced.
The Federal Communications Commissions (FCC) charged CBS with a fine of $550,000 for the incident, and Janet Jackson was never asked to come back and perform. Jackson was continuously ridiculed while Timberlake, years later, was allowed to come back and headline his very own Super Bowl halftime. Twitter has now named Janet Jackson Appreciation Day the same day as Super Bowl Sunday.
Now, I don’t care about Adam Levine’s nipples, and I don’t care about Janet Jackson’s nipple either. My thought are with the few who are wondering, is the FCC going to charge CBS for the proud exposure of his chest that Levine demonstrated? Jackson was forced to apologize and her reputation was mocked for nearly a decade. A week-after the performance, there is no talk of any punishment by the FCC or CBS for Levine’s actions.
Sure, society was more conservative in 2004 about what should be shown and what shouldn’t be shown on live television, especially at one of the most viewed events on tv. But the treatment given to Jackson on her involuntary exposure is unfair. Levine is given praise for his shirtless performance. Janet Jackson fans are not having it, as the double standards was clear and thousands pointed it out on twitter.
Why can a performance from a shirtless Adam Levine be allowed but a half a second wardrobe malfunction got Jackson blacklisted from many other events? There is nothing now to fix the ridicule received by Janet Jackson. Nearly 15 years after the event, I think an apology from CBS and the FCC is appropriate especially after the actions displayed by Adam Levine.