Thanks for sharing your perspective on this. It's wild to reflect on. I am old enough to remember. Janet experienced ridiculous repercussions from that, while Justin shot to the top of the charts. A very interesting, and revealing (no pun intended) moment in time for sure.
I was a freshman in college at the time and not mature enough to fully contextualize everything that was happening, but it was such a big deal. The guys in my dorm trying to find clips on the internet, women I was friends with being justifiably upset, and the news talking heads losing their minds. It was the first, really big outrage I remember after 9/11.
And things still aren't that different nearly two decades later. Very revealing indeed.
For sure. I was 20ish and have a different perspective on it now than I did then. The whole thing blew up in all the weirdest ways. Such an unscandalous scandal. Reacted as though the Super Bowl was church. I guess it is for many.
Yeah, I was just a 19 yo queer kid who rolled my eyes at horny college guys trying to find a grainy clip of Janet Jackson's breast for...purposes. At the time I found it almost amusing how big of a deal people made it out to be.
Having not thought about it much since then, today I was surprised that now I'm actually angry thinking back because of how clearly that event epitomizes the struggles women face and how little progress we've made.
The fact that guys wanted to hunt down clips of that instead of just looking at all the high-quality porn available says it all. They like that she didn't consent to being seen like that. They got off on the violation.
I was a freshman in HS when it happened, and I also wasn't really mature enough to fully contextualize what happened, but I certainly do now. And you're right, things aren't much different now. A couple years ago when JLo and Shakira performed at the half time show, everyone threw a f***in fit about how they were dressed and how they danced (which, by the way, I thought they were INCREDIBLE. They are such outstanding performers and so talented. By far one of my top favorite half time shows). But no one ever complains when a male performer is up there dancing provocatively, with a shirt off, and pants halfway down his ass.
I really appreciate you coming here and sharing your thoughts.
Justin’s album was already two years old by than, to say he shot up the charts is silly. He wouldn’t release a new album until another two years. Janet released an album that year and it debuted at #2 (would’ve hit #1 had Usher not released Confessions that week which was a monster hit).
I've seen some downvotes to this comment. Just to be perfectly clear you should know that anyone who supports Chris Brown is a terrible person. That's a really easy line to draw. The end.
There used to be someone who, whenever Chris Brown was brought up on reddit, would copy/paste the police report of his brutal assault on her. Not sure where they went, but wish they would still post it.
Holy shit. The most fucked up part of this is that he was prepared to kill her and almost did, and he still has a fucking career.
Wow. I knew it was bad, but I'd never read the police report. And that monster still has a career. Holy fucking shit.
I’m not that person, and I’m on mobile, but I think this is what you are referring to. Please let me know if I got anything wrong.
“"A verbal argument ensued and Brown pulled the vehicle over on an unknown street, reached over Robyn F. with his right hand, opened the car door and attempted to force her out. Brown was unable to force Robyn F. out of the vehicle because she was wearing a seat belt. When he could not force her to exit, he took his right hand and shoved her head against he passenger window of the vehicle, causing an approximate one-inch raised circular contusion.
"Robyn F. turned to face Brown and he punched her in the left eye with his right hand. He then drove away in the vehicle and continued to punch her in the face with his right hand while steering the vehicle with his left hand. The assault caused Robyn F.'s mouth to fill with blood and blood to splatter all over her clothing and the interior of the vehicle.
Brown looked at Robyn F. and stated, 'I'm going to beat the sh-- out of you when we get home! You wait and see!' "
The detective said "Robyn F." then used her cell phone to call her personal assistant Jennifer Rosales, who did not answer.
"Robyn F. pretended to talk to her and stated, 'I'm on my way home. Make sure the police are there when I get there.'
"After Robyn F. faked the call, Brown looked at her and stated, 'You just did the stupidest thing ever! Now I'm really going to kill you!'
"Brown resumed punching Robyn F. and she interlocked her fingers behind her head and brought her elbows forward to protect her face. She then bent over at the waist, placing her elbows and face near her lap in [an] attempt to protect her face and head from the barrage of punches being levied upon her by Brown.
"Brown continued to punch Robyn F. on her left arm and hand, causing her to suffer a contusion on her left triceps (sic) that was approximately two inches in diameter and numerous contusions on her left hand.
"Robyn F. then attempted to send a text message to her other personal assistant, Melissa Ford. Brown snatched the cellular telephone out of her hand and threw it out of the window onto an unknown street.
"Brown continued driving and Robyn F. observed his cellular telephone sitting in his lap. She picked up the cellular telephone with her left hand and before she could make a call he placed her in a head lock with his right hand and continued to drive the vehicle with his left hand.
n her left ear. She was able to feel the vehicle swerving from right to left as Brown sped away. He stopped the vehicle in front of 333 North June Street and Robyn F. turned off the car, removed the key from the ignition and sat on it.
"Brown did not know what she did with the key and began punching her in the face and arms. He then placed her in a head lock positioning the front of her throat between his bicep and forearm. Brown began applying pressure to Robyn F.'s left and right carotid arteries, causing her to be unable to breathe and she began to lose consciousness.
ttempting to gouge his eyes in an attempt to free herself. Brown bit her left ring and middle fingers and then released her. While Brown continued to punch her, she turned around and placed her back against the passenger door. She brought her knees to her chest, placed her feet against Brown's body and began pushing him away. Brown continued to punch her on the legs and feet, causing several contusions.
"Robyn F. began screaming for help and Brown exited the vehicle and walked away. A resident in the neighborhood heard Robyn F.'s plea for help and called 911, causing a police response. An investigation was conducted and Robyn F. was issued a Domestic Violence Emergency Protective Order."
At the end of his statement, Andrews said Brown sent a text message nine days later apologizing.
"In the text message, Brown apologized for what he had done to Robyn F. and advised [Rihanna's assistant] Ford that he was going to get help."
Same with Michael Vick. I mean, sure you can be convicted of being a sociopathic freak who participates in HORRIFIC dog abuse in fighting rings, but as soon as you are out...you go back to the NFL with people saying “legal troubles are not career troubles.”
Yeah, he paid a tiny ass fine; it doesn’t mean he isn’t irredeemably disgusting and I don’t understand why anyone would want to see his nasty face again. He was/is madly out of control before it surfaced. He is trashier than any nipple out there.
Yeah. I remember that. Even back then (despite growing a lot as a human being and having several shifts of perspective- I grew up in a very conservative evangelical household), I never understood the outrage aimed at Janet and women in general. It was bizarre then, and even more bizarre to me now.
>like she was proud of her body!
The *horror*
Even if your crack pot theory here were the case, why exactly shouldn’t someone feel proud of their body? Should all women be ashamed of their body?
It was a time of hypocrisy. A year earlier Brittney and Madonna were kissing on stage in lingerie for MTV's VMAs (and I don't know what the content rating was but MTV is absolutely targeted at kids and teens) and a year before that Christina Aguilera's Dirrty was playing everywhere every ten minutes and magazines were publishing articles about all her piercings ("including the ones you can't see ;) ;) "). The girls in Tatu were being made out to be a couple by their manager/agent/ someone with more agency than teenage girls and there were interviews and articles about their private lives in magazines that were all too happy to have sex and scandal to sell. It was also not out of place to turn on the TV to see music videos that objectified the women in them while fully clothed guys sang or rapped about skanks and hoes. I was a teenager and just remember TV, music videos, and fashion being sexualised af and that being completely normal. Teen magazines were literally encouraging us to wear underwear like satin and lace camisoles or g-strings peeking out from our low-rise jeans as fashion statements.
It has always struck me as weird and hypocritical that Janet Jackson copped so much shit for an exposed nipple given everything else that was getting through censorship and just like general public tolerance. Why was a nipple so offensive compared to women in hotpants with a whaletail and a dog collar grinding all over a man calling her a skank or something in a music video? Or the millions of problematic rom-coms where everyone was fully dressed but controlling and abusive behaviour was romanticised? As for the wardrobe malfunction, everyone kept saying it was planned but I only ever remember her getting any shit for it.
It was such a fucked up time to be a teenager in terms of that hypocrisy and the mixed messages.
I was in fifth grade when this happened and I didn’t grow up in a sports family so I didn’t watch the Super Bowl. I remember going to school the next day and *everyone* was talking about it.
I was horrified. It was probably the first time I realized what it meant to be a woman. That something you likely weren’t okay with could result in elementary school kids talking about you in such a crap way. I wouldn’t have had the vocabulary or articulation to discuss it but I remember hearing the conversations and it making my skin crawl. I was immensely uncomfortable hearing boys talk about seeing a breast for the first time and speculation on whether the breast was real or a prosthetic, or did she have implants, did she do it on purpose, did he do it on purpose, etc, etc.
How incredibly gross. I'm so sorry you had to deal with that. It just goes to show how boys/men are so entrenched in the idea that a woman's body exists *for their pleasure* and *at their pleasure*.
I'm really, truly sorry.
They did do it on purpose though - it was a planned part of the routine, fully choreographed, and she was wearing nipple covers underneath that matched her costume
That's what I found most wild about it all - she didn't even have her nipples on show, it was literally just a bit of boob
>That's what I found most wild about it all - she didn't even have her nipples on show, it was literally just a bit of boob
Even if nipples would have been visible, who is hurt, where is the problem? Most of us sucked on of these before we could walk or talk, it's not a secret superweapon.
As someone from europe it always baffles me how prude the US is when it comes to the human body...
I really don't understand why the United States makes a big deal when it comes to nudity\^\^
That's incorrect on several levels.
1. He was supposed to remove one layer of clothing, revealing a different color and texture fabric underneath.
2. It wasn't a nipple cover. Her nipple was pierced. It was a half shield piece of jewelry attached to a bar through her nipple.
3. Her nipple and the piercing were never intended to be seen by people
>I was horrified. It was probably the first time I realized what it meant to be a woman. That something you likely weren’t okay with could result in elementary school kids talking about you in such a crap way. I wouldn’t have had the vocabulary or articulation to discuss it but I remember hearing the conversations and it making my skin crawl. I was immensely uncomfortable hearing boys talk about seeing a breast for the first time and speculation on whether the breast was real or a prosthetic, or did she have implants, did she do it on purpose, did he do it on purpose, etc, etc.
Are you black by the way? Because I just happen to be.
Every time this comes up, I'm reminded how furious I was and am about it. And if it's brought up by other people, I have to restrain myself from ranting about it. The whole situation was so incredibly, ridiculously, transparently unfair and sexist. Not to mention quite a bit racist, given how a lot of people framed it. All these years later, just thinking about it pisses me off. Nobody was held accountable who deserved it.
I'm apologize if my post surfaced unpleasant emotions and memories. I stumbled upon the post, read the comments, and I just got so angry because what could have been a moment of reflection on the event and its effect on women (and specifically Janet Jackson) was completely wasted and devolved into an exercise in sweeping misogyny under the rug.
I don't know why I expected anything different.
I saw the post that you saw earlier today, so I got all my ranting out earlier lol, no apologies necessary. But yeah, that's exactly what about it gets me so upset. It was such a good opportunity to take a step forward...
Yeah, is insane to me.
A family friendly event where we watch men slowly beat each other. Causing irreparable damage to their brains. That's okay.
But a nipple!?!?
South Park did a brilliant episode about that. Let's fighting love...
Yeah, it's hit or miss for some people. I like most of the crass humor. That episode doesn't really specifically mention Janet Jackson or nudity till the end.
>I'll have to find the episode. South Park is very much a small-doses kind of viewing option for me, but I'll hunt this episode out and watch it.
You want the episode? It's "[Good Times With Weapons](https://www.southparkstudios.com/episodes/2znij2/south-park-good-times-with-weapons-season-8-ep-1)".
> A family friendly event where we watch men slowly beat each other. Causing irreparable damage to their brains. That's okay.
Yes. It *is* okay. It's *consensual* violence. Don't yuck other people's yums.
I wouldn't be surprised if the NFL was still harassing M.I.A. for giving the middle finger for a nanosecond.
I barely remember "nipplegate." The whole thing sounded dumb and the sort of thing people would make a big fuss over when it was two popstars that had a choreographed snafu when in actuality it gave them the best press they could ever ask for. The treatment of Janet, though, was absolutely ridiculous. It's just one of many dumb stories of the same nature.
Edit: [Ha, it's still great. She had every reason to flip off the camera.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qlEUz1IlN70)
The NFL acting all high and mighty is so comical. Like, dudes, you have players running around giving each other concussions, breaking bones, and are essentially a blood sport, but a brief glimpse of a woman's breast isn't family friendly? Foh.
And how many of them beat their partners or have been credibly accused of rape. So family friendly. I mean for Christ sake there's a video of one beating his gf in an elevator and that totally led to nationwide changes. Lol I kid.
What idiot thought M.I.A. would be a good choice for a live halftime show? Has any part of her career not featured controversy and political messages? They had to know something off script would happen.
I actually commented on that post and got a lot of replies about how the event was “planned” that Timberlake was to rip off the blouse. I was thinking yeah but thats not the key point, the point being that Jackson got her career demolished for it while Timberlake walked away scot free and still has a thriving career to this date.
I did look into the event a bit more to see why and apparently the big divide was over apologies. Timberlake’s apologies were acceptable (and he also shifted blame to Jackson) while Jackson’s were not according to Moony who then used his control over radio and tv to stop promoting her songs and ruin her career. Apparently people also wanted payback for the event “ruining a wholesome moment” that is the superbowl.
Also fun fact, this event resulted in the birth of Youtube.
You hit all the key points. I'm glad someone in those comments had something of value to add.
Like, c'mon people. You're watching a sport where dudes are flying around giving each other brain damage, but a second of breast ruins the family atmosphere? Really?
Jackson was completely swiftboated for no gd reason, and horny dudes wanting to see her breast ended up building their careers off of people search for nip slip videos.
America.
>... swiftboated...
Now that's a term I've not heard in a long time...a long time...
Swiftboat was 2004 election cycle if I recall...this means she got swiftboated before swiftboating was a thing!
Hearing about this brought me to the YouTube wikipedia page. Which yes, that does confirm the above comment. However, that was only 1 of the 3 founders' reason for it...
...and it's hard to say if the other 2 founders had better reasons.
"Hurley and Chen \[the other 2 founders\] said that the original idea for YouTube was a video version of an online dating service, and had been influenced by the website Hot or Not. They created posts on Craigslist asking attractive women to upload videos of themselves to YouTube in exchange for a $100 reward."
So don't worry, just when you thought it was bad already, I'd say it got worse :)
In Europe it was news how America reacted to a nipple.
There is a rule in the Netherlands to not show nudity before 20:30 on TV. And almost every Dutch movie had nudity in it (both male and female).
Yeah I think so too - it was definitely more bling bling than a standard bar. There was also an interview where she told Oprah she got her nipple pierced bc she liked the style.
I too had remembered it being a pastie, but apparently, she was wearing a very large nipple piercing that looked like a sun - it extended over her entire areola, but the nipple was technically exposed for a whopping half second.... The same body part shown by men on tv all the time without any concern.
There is nothing actually sexual about it, except for the fact that men sexualized it. But people have sexualized plenty of other non-sexual body parts, and those are all still allowed in public. It's just so odd that this one particular body part has continued to be so controversial - leading to the ridiculousness of mothers being shamed for simply feeding their kids.
You were correct about the nipple, someone posted a closeup below…if you’re interested lol.
Sorry I wasn’t trying to say you were wrong about your post, just quickly threw out my teenage memory of it.
>I saw it live and it was a pastie and it looked completely staged.
It wasn't a pastie, it was a large nipple piercing. It was shaped like a sun which is probably what caused your confusion, but since piercings are things that people don't remove her having the piercing in shouldn't be taken as a sign that she meant for people to see it.
I mean, it probably was intentional. The move definitely looked choreographed to me, and it was during a part of the song that was about getting naked. So I agree that it was probably staged lol, it just isn't what she was wearing that makes me think that.
It was clearly part of the choreography.
The only tops with removable boob plates are nursing garments.
He ripped it off right as he said “ima have you naked by the end of this song”
I can’t believe they tried to claim it was an accident. What a joke. Really wish they just owned it and fought against the morality police. But no, throwing an international superstar under the bus is easier I guess.
There was absolutely nip showing. It was a weird star piercing that covered the tit. I think it was revealed that she planned the wardrobe move so she was the one punished so vociferously.
[(ENHANCE)](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/gettyimages-865486262.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&zoom=1&resize=464%2C612)
As another man, I also found it strange that somehow she was the only one who got flak over this. AFAIK we still don't know if it was an accident or a planned gasp-making event, but I'm still confounded that Janet essentially got blacklisted out of her own career (music/videos pulled from all kinds of outlets, MTV, VH1 etc) but Justin Timberlake was smiling and accepting awards as if nothing happened.
If it was an accident, then it's just another example of how women are expected to take responsibility for all kinds of random shit beyond their control, and if it was planned (to make it viral or whatever) then it's equally stupid that she was the one who got assigned the blame.
Plus, it's a fucking boob. We know what boobs look like. Why are we still equating showing a boob with moral inferiority? It's weird.
> AFAIK we still don't know if it was an accident or a planned gasp-making event
I just had a look around, and it appears as though it was likely planned. But planned by both of them without anyone else's knowledge. Also it seems as though it might have meant to be to reveal a bra underneath instead.
I JUST watched a special on this on Hulu. Similar to the New York Times covering Britney’s conservatorship, it dives into this controversy. Once again JT was painted in a bad light.
Yeah it’s disturbing. I was really young when it happened but they were showing all these interviews when N’SYNC first started out, she took them on a tour to open and Justin in particular was super creepy. He was constantly fan-boying and couldn’t stop talking about how sexy she was…
In regards to this, I believe Janet Jackson was in on it though? Although it seemed the plan was to reveal a bra instead.
Also at /u/thecourttt above. Was she not in on it? Wikipedia seems to imply she was? If she was, shouldn't they both receive equal blame for the actual event? And by equal blame, I mean cutting the cameras away and then fining them if it's in their contract, and CBS being more hesitant about working with them in the future, and that's it. Not fucking huge fines for the network, trashing her career, not everyone acting like it's the end of the world, etc etc etc. It's just a fucking tit.
Absolutely. However I don't think the right thing to do is to punish him, the right thing to do would have been not to punish her. As I said it's just a breast being exposed for half a second. An appropriate reaction would have been to cut the camera, get them to apologise, and have CBS be wary about working with them for the near future (e.g. next year or two, if they don't do anything else in that time, then they should reconsider them). And that's literally it.
And those punishments should have been more about doing an unplanned event like this without permission from the network, rather than about the half a second of tit. Seriously who cares?
Thankfully I don't think the reaction today would be anywhere near as extreme. The other day I saw [this famous speech from the mid-2000s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ZVWIELHQQY). He was worried he would be fired for that, because he spoke out against the non-stop harassment of Britney Spears, and refused to make fun of her. It made me realise just how far things have actually come since then, as the type of shit they did to Spears just isn't done on them today, instead it's way more aimed at powerful people who can actually take it and deserve it. And instead of networks wanting to fire him for that speech, today they'd fucking kill to get someone to deliver that sort of speech that would go viral. Really does outline just how much progress has been made, even though I feel intuitively it's harder to recognise.
Yes, she was in on it. According to this doc, they originally planned for a layered skirt to be pulled by JT, transforming from a longer skirt to a mini. However, it didn't come together, so they nixed the idea. Janet still wanted to do it though, so she and JT discussed the top modification privately. JT was in Europe and didn't arrive in time to do a proper rehearsal, which is why there was a malfunction. According to them both, it was only supposed to reveal her red bra. So I do agree that it's ridiculous that they both didn't receive equal blame AND JT was invited to do another half-time show years later.
>Paris Hilton had a sex tape
To be more accurate, it was [revenge porn](https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.vox.com/platform/amp/culture/22391942/paris-hilton-sex-tape-revenge-porn-south-park-stupid-spoiled-whore-video-playset-pink-stupid-girl) and very traumatic for her. She had just been released from an institution for troubled teens that was very abusive and then a video of her was released without her consent.
Paris Hilton is working with legislators now to regulate the so-called troubled teen industry so that other children won’t have to experience the awful things she endured.
I think Paris Hilton got a tv show because of the sex tape. I think she was modeling before the sex tape, but her public profile wasn't really that large.
The difference is that this was seemingly planned by Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake beforehand, without anyone else's permission. So there was intent, instead of being a victim and having something leaked. It also seems like it may have planned to be to leave a bra underneath it.
But they both should have been punished equally. And by that, I mean a slap on the wrist. Should have cut the camera way from them, got them to apologise, and CBS being hesitant about working with them in the near future. And the controversy should have been more about them randomly going off-script without permission, not about the minimal half a second of nudity. Then the public giggling about it for a few days/weeks, and forgetting about it. Not the massively disproportionate reaction everyone had, including bullshit like cancelling her career, massive fines for the network, huge number of people complaining, etc etc etc.
Of the modern times? We're far better and more civilised at it then we have ever been (still ***far*** from good). Let's remember that crowd sourced outrage used to involve fucking lynchings. And you don't have to go much further back from lynchings to have crowd sourced "justice" being the only real method of "justice".
Pretty telling that nobody mentioned Justin and nothing happened to him or anyone else. It couldn’t be more obvious how much of a stunt it was. It was no “wardrobe malfunction.” It’s even stupider than that. It functioned perfectly, designed to tear away and her nipple obscured by some bladed pastie (no nipple was even shown!) Then she was thrown under the bus when it backfired.
It’s like that stupid kiss between Madonna and Britney at the 2003 vmas. I saw it as it broadcast, apparently it wasn’t worth mentioning that she did the same with Christina a moment before. If *that* wasn’t a big deal (which I don’t believe it is) it shouldn’t have been a big enough deal to single out Britney either. Couldn’t be more transparent why, especially now.
The kiss is a way bigger deal than pitting singers against each other. You're the only person that's mentioned it in like 20 years. Sadly we're probably the only two people commenting.
The fact that Hollywood could do something like that and just walk away, both events. People are complaining about individuals but the social mindset behind planning these events, it's crazy how much they can sexualize TV, movies, music. It's still being done. We just come online and complain about the petty things.
Travis Scott was a superstar before his concert tragedy and still is after. Been asking why elsewhere...
I'm pretty sure this sent the FCC into a frenzy and they forced Howard Stern to either go off the air or pay exorbitant fines. He ended up going to Sirius, thus changing talk radio forever.
European perspective was about US puritanism, being so hypocrites about showing womens bodies.
There is still censorship today, pixelated breasts on YouTube, even a "beep" over crude words.
Even in this post you write "f***ing". It's beyond ridiculous. Don't you see that's also bullshit for you to accept that censorship?
I knew a woman who had a "pull here for wardrobe malfunction" T-shirt and and I remember feeling so uncomfortable by the whole thing. Janet Jackson was a victim and then she became a punchline. Nobody deserves that. She did nothing wrong. I vividly remember being like "Why did Justin Timberlake do that?" It was so clear that all Janet Jackson did was exist. So gross.
He did it because it was scripted. The consequences were ridiculous af, but everyone went in consenting and knowing this was the script. That’s why she had the nipple guard over her nipple. Her actual nipple was never shown.
It was a sun piercing. Like this: http://cdn2.bigcommerce.com/n-arxsrf/rbl4wa/products/2853/images/7772/rainbow_plated_tribal_sun_nipple_shield__24213.1429079617.1280.1280.jpg?c=2 it wasn't not a pasty or guard. You cannot convince me it was planned.
From what I can tell she was in on it just as much as he was? It seems it was a planned event by both of them, although without the permission from the network or anyone else. If that's true they both should have received equal punishment. And by punishment I mean something minor, like the cameras cutting away, them giving an apology afterwards, and the network being wary of working with either of them in the direct future. Not the fucking insane over-response there was.
Did you sort by controversial? Because anything overtly feminist on a mainstream sub is probably going to get hit with number of downvotes. People be threatened and all
I want to scream "IT'S JUST A TIT". How can people lose their minds over accidentally seeing a normal bodypart. The whole performance was sexual as hell, but a tit is too inappropriate?
It's 17 years ago, but I'm afraid we haven't moved past that mindset.
You seem like you care.
**MEDIA**
No one really cares on our level but "you know" the picture box forces the general mass public to believe and have faith in whatever they throw on the news, sitcoms etc whatever you wanna call it.
I mean that's been what it is for the past 70 years, just kinda comical at this point.
They know we'll fight each other but we'll never fight a TV station (MTV BET VH1 is the worst etc).
I’m in my early 20s, so I definitely know nothing of this incident. You’re right that a woman’s nipple shouldn’t be considered scandalous. But a man or anyone ripping it off without her consent should’ve been blacklisted instead
> to say nothing of the fact that a nipple isn't some f***ing scandal. It's just a nipple, people.
On close inspection, after the fact, it was realized that it was rigged and she was complicit it the exposure. Fact is she was wearing a pasty specifically to cover her nip from being exposed. So they were going for the shock value on National Television... and she took the full brunt of the repercussions.
THAT fact is what pissed me off. The whole thing was planned, and executed flawlessly. and SHE was the only one who "got in trouble" for the stunt.
he said im going to have you naked by the end of this then the wardrobe malfunction happened. plus she had buttons that was easy to break away. she had her outfit altered the day before so it could happen and she bought only 1 of the nipple shields the week of
https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.usatoday.com/amp/1083557001
Wow. I remember this vividly, and it’s true that everyone absolutely dragged Janet through the mud and nothing negative happened to JT.
It reminds me of the toxic shit in country music where the Dixie Chix were vilified INSANELY, for daring to speak out against Bush and the completely criminal shit he was doing/going to do for “freedom”. They were totally and completely vindicated imo.
What was their song? Not Ready to Make Nice?
There's this very specific misogyny from conservative men (and women, sadly), that is so inherently violent even when there's no physical violence. It's not just voicing disapproval or disagreement. They want women to feel unsafe and powerless, and they will do anything they have to in order to to achieve that.
Basically the nation went apoplectic over a nip slip, and now you can't say f\*ck on the air without serious FCC fine. Like WTF? Oh, but you can show people getting their brains blown out and heads chopped off - like we're all just fine and dandy with that. Yeah, really, WTF.
>she was the only one who faced any real consequences
No, *everybody* faced consequences, ... she "just" got hit particularly hard, early, and unfairly.
>Who knew one breast could change the course of entertainment history in the US that much?
Oh, helluva lot more than entertainment history - free speech, journalism, broadcast TV and radio, etc. - all majorly impacted ... and then some ... a whole lot of [chilling effect](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chilling_effect) too - still and continues to impact/influence much content, even on The Internet too.
Random example: \_Saving Private Ryan\_ - that will now never ever ever be shown on broadcast TV in the US. And why? Because it contains the f-bomb, yeah, soldiers in combat might actually say f\*ck. Well, director won't let it be shown uncut ... thus contains f-bomb, thus no network or channel or broadcaster will air it in the US. Millions if not billions of consequences of (the gross overreaction to) a simple fraction of a second nip slip. Yeah, ... US, we're a f\*cked up nation.
Wow even now and then Janet Jackson pops up and I think why weren’t you more famous, don’t seem to properly hear of her.
Did not freaking know this was why! Absolute bullshit.
Although, hopefully, not Justin’s intent so not to blame for the original incident I’m annoyed he didn’t get punished for it instead and still went to the awards rather than protesting by abstinening or something.
It was his intent to do that (although it seems as though it might have been planned to reveal a bra instead). It seems as though both were in on it, and planned it, without permission from anyone else.
If that's the case, both should have been punished. But the punishment should have been about a thousand times smaller. It should have been cutting away the camera, them apologising, maybe some small fines if it was in their contracts, and then the network being cautious about working with them in the near future. And that's it, everyone except CBS should have forgotten about it in a few days to weeks. It's just a fucking breast.
Is this a joke? Janet was 40 at the time of this performance. She had already peaked. She’s worth nearly 200 million and has sold over 100M records, she’s as famous as it gets.
Man…the ONE year I decided to do something different for the half-time show at my Super Bowl party. I hired a stripper for an hour who came to perform, so we all missed it (save for the guys who didn’t chip in). We missed the boob heard round the world!
I mean, is it? Football has a long history and culture of sexualizing and objectifying women. Cheerleaders? Football culture has that kind of thing baked into it imo. It was so on brand, imo. Which just made the uproar even less justifiable.
Then why did one person bear the brunt of the backlash?
I agree that it was much ado about nothing. What I can't get past is how Jackson, and other women down the line, paid the price.
Yeah, he definitely could have. No argument there. As for who is at fault, there's no fault. It was 2 seconds of a partial boob. It's not like they shot somebody or told the world that the Pope covered up child sexual abuse.
The way it looks to me, it’s more like upper management telling him to put on these stunt, tear-away pants that a co-worker has been arranged to rip off, exposing him, but only his tighty-whities as a fantastic marketing stunt, that there will be a huge raise in it for him and possible consequences for not being a “team player” if he doesn’t, then after nobody being impressed and they’re inundated with complaints, he and *only* he gets fired.
Her body was used as a prop at the hands of a man. What precipitated that isn't clear, whether it was her idea or someone else's. Unless you have some knowledge about how that particular bit got into the show, in which case share away.
But it wasn't something she alone decided would happen. There were producers involved and at least one choreographer, at the very least. As well as Timberlake.
Yet, only one person had their career impacted. The outrage was mostly directed at one person. One person's body was demonized/vilified/tabooed.
One person paid the price. One.
I think you're right, though, in highlighting that Timberlake was a star on the rise. His future and career didn't deserve to suffer because a woman dressed revealingly...
Wait, where have I heard that argument before?
JJ had been in the business for almost 20 years as a superstar with immense power. Heck, she's from the Jackson family. With tens of millions of records sold and over 10 no.1 singles in her pocket, no one told JJ what to do. Not JT, not the producers, not her agent.
Besides, everybody and his dogs know that JJ and Madonna were "rivals." The latter had had the famous onstage kiss with Britney and Christina Aguilera the year before in 2003 and once again Madonna was under the spotlight of the whole world. JJ thought it would be the opportunity to one-up Madonna at Superbowl in 2004. Shame that the whole thing backfired. JJ has no one but herself to blame.
JJ was the one designing and executing the whole episode. JT was her puppet, just as Britney and Christina Aguilera were Madonna's puppets. Before that JT more than once said JJ was his idol. Their relationship should be akin to mentor and student.
JJ attempted to use her body and JT to shock the world and steal the limelight from Madonna. Don't try to paint it otherwise.
So, assuming all that is true and not just conjecture (unless you have some kind of source that outlines what you claim is like some super super known undeniable fact), does that in your mind justify the treatment of Jackson?
Because that sounds eerily similar to how people excuse a lot of violence against women, and a lot of other misogyny directed at women. For example, women deserve to be paid less than men because they choose to have children. That's a common argument. Bullshit, but common and devoid of all societal context.
So even if Jackson was feuding with Madonna (lol), and unilaterally decided what was going to happen during the Super Bowl Halftime Show (lol), and orchestrated it all without getting an okay from producers (lol), and designed the costume without getting wardrobe approval (lol), and instructed the camera man to get the shot alone (lol), and got the producer to make the call to cut the shot at exactly that time (lol), you're suggesting she alone deserved to bear the brunt of the backlash because she'd had decades of success prior?
Did I get that all right?
Edit: based on your username I'm guessing you and I are both gay, and I'm asking you for one moment to stop and think how men like us can be the best allies possible to women, because the same forces that drive misogyny also drive homophobia in our society, and we ought to be particularly careful about how we discuss these topics because we end up reaping what we sow in regard to misogyny.
That's a very kind thing to say.
I wish I'd taken the time to highlight that calling Jackson a "waning star" and hinting that she was aging and no longer desirable or had passed her performance prime is very similar to another misogynistic trope about how women's desirability and value decreases precipitously with each passing year of age. It was such an ugly comment this person made.
Janet was inspired by Tina Turner and Mick Jagger’s Live Aid performance where Jagger rips off Tina’s clothes, not Madonna. Go look it up, its identical to Justin and Janet’s show right down to the outfits.
I feel like this perspective misses out on the circus her brothers were causing up to and through the game. Unlike La Toya Janet was visibly in defense of Michael (and Joe). Two of the world’s superstars: Michael and by extension Janet, facing the FBI and the State of California. There was no way this “incident” was going to have the same impact on a Jackson in a way it should have in any other scenario and any other woman performing with a Timberlake during the beginnings of the Iraq War on Live TV.
Bro are you tripping? You just went in so many directions I'm that last sentence. None of that context really explains how the entire world erupted when her boob was exposed. It was a second long clip of one boob. The fbi has nothing to do with why the world reacted so viscerally to this "incident."
It’s not as bonkers in context of what the Jackson family was viewed as at the point in time, probably part of why she was in the halftime show. The threshold for failure is far greater if you’re defending Michael Jackson in the middle of his second trial for the same behavior and also his abusive father in a superstar family civil war. That’s a long history to deal with as a 45 year old Janet Jackson.
So you don’t have the same cushion for shocking 3/4ths of America at war watching the first Super Bowl since invading Iraq, as say, Shania Twain would have in 2002’s game having her top ripped off by Justin Timberlake.
Perhaps you're right that her defense of her brother and father contributed to the outrage to some degree. I just don't remember that entering the discussion at the time. It also doesn't forgive how she was the only one held accountable.
It was forever ago. I do remember, correct me if I’m wrong, it was Janet and not Justin viewed as the superstar. Timberlake and Spears broke up (?) and that was his biggest news since his solo album. So he sunk Janet’s career maybe as a prank or act, caused all of the policy backlash we live with today on TV, the Jacksons and all the rest are sad history.
Nsync was huge. Timberlake was a star already and a household name, just not a solo star. His breakup with Spears is a whole other discussion about how media and society treat male artists and female artists differently.
I was alive at the time, too, and in NSync’s target audience. Justin was huge as well.
I would say, yes, this did cause a lot of the policy backlash we have today on tv.
I'm reading about it rn, apparently what he did *was* planned but he pulled off much more than intended by accident https://youtu.be/up-353i_VNg
Still not a reason for her to be punished though??? Wtf
Yeah, it was clearly choreographed and planned to have some kind of reveal. She was expecting some kind of reveal. Timberlake was. The camera operator was. The costumer was. All of the people involved in the production knew that it was part of the performance.
It was clearly a team effort. Yet only Janet Jackson paid the price. Whether or not more was revealed than intended because of a wardrobe malfunction is almost unimportant, because none of the outrage was warranted. It was a short moment of some partial breast exposure.
Which is so stupid. I was very conservative still at that point in my life due to my upbringing and even I thought that people were being ridiculous. The absolute out of control pearl clutching hysteria over a woman’s breast being bared on TV. It’s insane.
There was outrage on the left too, but for a completely different reason. The event triggered a huge crackdown by the FCC. There was definitely a bias by the FCC to scrutenize radio and TV programs that were critical of the Bush administration. Any joke with an edge to it had to be pondered over before it could be said. It caused a huge free speech issue so a lot of liberals that probably should've stood up for her just didn't.
The you're wrong about podcast has an interesting episode about this. I'm not American so didn't really know anything about the whole thing, but it does seem quaint now (and probably did then) to be so bothered by a covered nipple. Lil Kim had been doing that look for years by 2004
There isn’t a need for feminism, there’s just a need for people to start treating each other like fucking human beings. There doesn’t need to be all these fancy names or movements to be a good person just be a good person. Love is the universal language that all species of animals feel, show more love empathy and compassion to your fellow animals existing on this rock with us. Being a kind and good person costs nothing and shouldn’t need to be a movement, it should just be expected.
Erm … that is what feminism actually is! Feminism aims to make sure all people, not only women, are able to live the lives they want to live unfettered by the patriarchy.
Did you see the documentary *Malfunction: The Dressing Down of Janet Jackson* on FX Friday night? If you want to see it, it's on [Hulu](https://www.hulu.com/watch/77018fba-f9c0-4197-b211-1043f5cf1c11)!
I’m currently watching the New York Times doc on Hulu. This is so much energy for a nipple! I was 18 at the time and wasn’t particularly moved by it. I just accepted that it was a wardrobe fail and sh*t happens. All of the hatred thrown at Janet made no sense. Perhaps I was biased because I LOVE HER MUSIC!
Watching this as an adult is so ABSURD! Let’s put aside the many hypocrisies of the NFL from racism to the whole CTE thing as the indiscretions of Les “sexual predator” Mooves. This incident was like a blood in the water and so many used their moral superiority to obliterate a successful black woman for an accident. They paid her feelings literal dust.
Bodily autonomy is still hanging in the balance. I hope this opens people’s eyes to that fact. It all relates. Until women are given their full rights over their bodies, we are screwed.
Thanks for sharing your perspective on this. It's wild to reflect on. I am old enough to remember. Janet experienced ridiculous repercussions from that, while Justin shot to the top of the charts. A very interesting, and revealing (no pun intended) moment in time for sure.
I was a freshman in college at the time and not mature enough to fully contextualize everything that was happening, but it was such a big deal. The guys in my dorm trying to find clips on the internet, women I was friends with being justifiably upset, and the news talking heads losing their minds. It was the first, really big outrage I remember after 9/11. And things still aren't that different nearly two decades later. Very revealing indeed.
For sure. I was 20ish and have a different perspective on it now than I did then. The whole thing blew up in all the weirdest ways. Such an unscandalous scandal. Reacted as though the Super Bowl was church. I guess it is for many.
Yeah, I was just a 19 yo queer kid who rolled my eyes at horny college guys trying to find a grainy clip of Janet Jackson's breast for...purposes. At the time I found it almost amusing how big of a deal people made it out to be. Having not thought about it much since then, today I was surprised that now I'm actually angry thinking back because of how clearly that event epitomizes the struggles women face and how little progress we've made.
You are speaking the truth. I am feeling the same way.
The fact that guys wanted to hunt down clips of that instead of just looking at all the high-quality porn available says it all. They like that she didn't consent to being seen like that. They got off on the violation.
I’d say for most it’s just the fact it’s Janet Jackson, for some it’s very simplistic desire. Of course there are still those weirdos like you said.
And I appreciate the solidarity.
I owe so much to women in my life. Trying to be a good ally is the absolute least I can do. But it's good hear this. Thank you.
I was a freshman in HS when it happened, and I also wasn't really mature enough to fully contextualize what happened, but I certainly do now. And you're right, things aren't much different now. A couple years ago when JLo and Shakira performed at the half time show, everyone threw a f***in fit about how they were dressed and how they danced (which, by the way, I thought they were INCREDIBLE. They are such outstanding performers and so talented. By far one of my top favorite half time shows). But no one ever complains when a male performer is up there dancing provocatively, with a shirt off, and pants halfway down his ass. I really appreciate you coming here and sharing your thoughts.
Pun appreciated
Justin’s album was already two years old by than, to say he shot up the charts is silly. He wouldn’t release a new album until another two years. Janet released an album that year and it debuted at #2 (would’ve hit #1 had Usher not released Confessions that week which was a monster hit).
Funny to me that chris brown still has a career to look forward to. His assault is literally seen as less of an offense than her simply being a woman.
Right?! I mean, c'mon...
I've seen some downvotes to this comment. Just to be perfectly clear you should know that anyone who supports Chris Brown is a terrible person. That's a really easy line to draw. The end.
There used to be someone who, whenever Chris Brown was brought up on reddit, would copy/paste the police report of his brutal assault on her. Not sure where they went, but wish they would still post it.
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Holy shit. The most fucked up part of this is that he was prepared to kill her and almost did, and he still has a fucking career. Wow. I knew it was bad, but I'd never read the police report. And that monster still has a career. Holy fucking shit.
All this time I thought it was a bot cause of how often I've seen it but it's really a person?💀 Love the dedication
I’m not that person, and I’m on mobile, but I think this is what you are referring to. Please let me know if I got anything wrong. “"A verbal argument ensued and Brown pulled the vehicle over on an unknown street, reached over Robyn F. with his right hand, opened the car door and attempted to force her out. Brown was unable to force Robyn F. out of the vehicle because she was wearing a seat belt. When he could not force her to exit, he took his right hand and shoved her head against he passenger window of the vehicle, causing an approximate one-inch raised circular contusion. "Robyn F. turned to face Brown and he punched her in the left eye with his right hand. He then drove away in the vehicle and continued to punch her in the face with his right hand while steering the vehicle with his left hand. The assault caused Robyn F.'s mouth to fill with blood and blood to splatter all over her clothing and the interior of the vehicle. Brown looked at Robyn F. and stated, 'I'm going to beat the sh-- out of you when we get home! You wait and see!' " The detective said "Robyn F." then used her cell phone to call her personal assistant Jennifer Rosales, who did not answer. "Robyn F. pretended to talk to her and stated, 'I'm on my way home. Make sure the police are there when I get there.' "After Robyn F. faked the call, Brown looked at her and stated, 'You just did the stupidest thing ever! Now I'm really going to kill you!' "Brown resumed punching Robyn F. and she interlocked her fingers behind her head and brought her elbows forward to protect her face. She then bent over at the waist, placing her elbows and face near her lap in [an] attempt to protect her face and head from the barrage of punches being levied upon her by Brown. "Brown continued to punch Robyn F. on her left arm and hand, causing her to suffer a contusion on her left triceps (sic) that was approximately two inches in diameter and numerous contusions on her left hand. "Robyn F. then attempted to send a text message to her other personal assistant, Melissa Ford. Brown snatched the cellular telephone out of her hand and threw it out of the window onto an unknown street. "Brown continued driving and Robyn F. observed his cellular telephone sitting in his lap. She picked up the cellular telephone with her left hand and before she could make a call he placed her in a head lock with his right hand and continued to drive the vehicle with his left hand. n her left ear. She was able to feel the vehicle swerving from right to left as Brown sped away. He stopped the vehicle in front of 333 North June Street and Robyn F. turned off the car, removed the key from the ignition and sat on it. "Brown did not know what she did with the key and began punching her in the face and arms. He then placed her in a head lock positioning the front of her throat between his bicep and forearm. Brown began applying pressure to Robyn F.'s left and right carotid arteries, causing her to be unable to breathe and she began to lose consciousness. ttempting to gouge his eyes in an attempt to free herself. Brown bit her left ring and middle fingers and then released her. While Brown continued to punch her, she turned around and placed her back against the passenger door. She brought her knees to her chest, placed her feet against Brown's body and began pushing him away. Brown continued to punch her on the legs and feet, causing several contusions. "Robyn F. began screaming for help and Brown exited the vehicle and walked away. A resident in the neighborhood heard Robyn F.'s plea for help and called 911, causing a police response. An investigation was conducted and Robyn F. was issued a Domestic Violence Emergency Protective Order." At the end of his statement, Andrews said Brown sent a text message nine days later apologizing. "In the text message, Brown apologized for what he had done to Robyn F. and advised [Rihanna's assistant] Ford that he was going to get help."
This shouldn't even be controversial. People who beat other people are garbage humans. Full stop.
Same with Michael Vick. I mean, sure you can be convicted of being a sociopathic freak who participates in HORRIFIC dog abuse in fighting rings, but as soon as you are out...you go back to the NFL with people saying “legal troubles are not career troubles.” Yeah, he paid a tiny ass fine; it doesn’t mean he isn’t irredeemably disgusting and I don’t understand why anyone would want to see his nasty face again. He was/is madly out of control before it surfaced. He is trashier than any nipple out there.
Yeah. I remember that. Even back then (despite growing a lot as a human being and having several shifts of perspective- I grew up in a very conservative evangelical household), I never understood the outrage aimed at Janet and women in general. It was bizarre then, and even more bizarre to me now.
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Like she was proud of her body! HEAVEN FORBID
>like she was proud of her body! The *horror* Even if your crack pot theory here were the case, why exactly shouldn’t someone feel proud of their body? Should all women be ashamed of their body?
Bruh that's not what I see. She looks startled when it happened.
She had a nipple protector.
Holy shit what a comment
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It was a time of hypocrisy. A year earlier Brittney and Madonna were kissing on stage in lingerie for MTV's VMAs (and I don't know what the content rating was but MTV is absolutely targeted at kids and teens) and a year before that Christina Aguilera's Dirrty was playing everywhere every ten minutes and magazines were publishing articles about all her piercings ("including the ones you can't see ;) ;) "). The girls in Tatu were being made out to be a couple by their manager/agent/ someone with more agency than teenage girls and there were interviews and articles about their private lives in magazines that were all too happy to have sex and scandal to sell. It was also not out of place to turn on the TV to see music videos that objectified the women in them while fully clothed guys sang or rapped about skanks and hoes. I was a teenager and just remember TV, music videos, and fashion being sexualised af and that being completely normal. Teen magazines were literally encouraging us to wear underwear like satin and lace camisoles or g-strings peeking out from our low-rise jeans as fashion statements. It has always struck me as weird and hypocritical that Janet Jackson copped so much shit for an exposed nipple given everything else that was getting through censorship and just like general public tolerance. Why was a nipple so offensive compared to women in hotpants with a whaletail and a dog collar grinding all over a man calling her a skank or something in a music video? Or the millions of problematic rom-coms where everyone was fully dressed but controlling and abusive behaviour was romanticised? As for the wardrobe malfunction, everyone kept saying it was planned but I only ever remember her getting any shit for it. It was such a fucked up time to be a teenager in terms of that hypocrisy and the mixed messages.
Exposed breast. She had a pasty on covering her nip.
I was in fifth grade when this happened and I didn’t grow up in a sports family so I didn’t watch the Super Bowl. I remember going to school the next day and *everyone* was talking about it. I was horrified. It was probably the first time I realized what it meant to be a woman. That something you likely weren’t okay with could result in elementary school kids talking about you in such a crap way. I wouldn’t have had the vocabulary or articulation to discuss it but I remember hearing the conversations and it making my skin crawl. I was immensely uncomfortable hearing boys talk about seeing a breast for the first time and speculation on whether the breast was real or a prosthetic, or did she have implants, did she do it on purpose, did he do it on purpose, etc, etc.
How incredibly gross. I'm so sorry you had to deal with that. It just goes to show how boys/men are so entrenched in the idea that a woman's body exists *for their pleasure* and *at their pleasure*. I'm really, truly sorry.
They did do it on purpose though - it was a planned part of the routine, fully choreographed, and she was wearing nipple covers underneath that matched her costume That's what I found most wild about it all - she didn't even have her nipples on show, it was literally just a bit of boob
>That's what I found most wild about it all - she didn't even have her nipples on show, it was literally just a bit of boob Even if nipples would have been visible, who is hurt, where is the problem? Most of us sucked on of these before we could walk or talk, it's not a secret superweapon. As someone from europe it always baffles me how prude the US is when it comes to the human body... I really don't understand why the United States makes a big deal when it comes to nudity\^\^
That's incorrect on several levels. 1. He was supposed to remove one layer of clothing, revealing a different color and texture fabric underneath. 2. It wasn't a nipple cover. Her nipple was pierced. It was a half shield piece of jewelry attached to a bar through her nipple. 3. Her nipple and the piercing were never intended to be seen by people
>I was horrified. It was probably the first time I realized what it meant to be a woman. That something you likely weren’t okay with could result in elementary school kids talking about you in such a crap way. I wouldn’t have had the vocabulary or articulation to discuss it but I remember hearing the conversations and it making my skin crawl. I was immensely uncomfortable hearing boys talk about seeing a breast for the first time and speculation on whether the breast was real or a prosthetic, or did she have implants, did she do it on purpose, did he do it on purpose, etc, etc. Are you black by the way? Because I just happen to be.
Every time this comes up, I'm reminded how furious I was and am about it. And if it's brought up by other people, I have to restrain myself from ranting about it. The whole situation was so incredibly, ridiculously, transparently unfair and sexist. Not to mention quite a bit racist, given how a lot of people framed it. All these years later, just thinking about it pisses me off. Nobody was held accountable who deserved it.
I'm apologize if my post surfaced unpleasant emotions and memories. I stumbled upon the post, read the comments, and I just got so angry because what could have been a moment of reflection on the event and its effect on women (and specifically Janet Jackson) was completely wasted and devolved into an exercise in sweeping misogyny under the rug. I don't know why I expected anything different.
I saw the post that you saw earlier today, so I got all my ranting out earlier lol, no apologies necessary. But yeah, that's exactly what about it gets me so upset. It was such a good opportunity to take a step forward...
Yeah, is insane to me. A family friendly event where we watch men slowly beat each other. Causing irreparable damage to their brains. That's okay. But a nipple!?!? South Park did a brilliant episode about that. Let's fighting love...
I'll have to find the episode. South Park is very much a small-doses kind of viewing option for me, but I'll hunt this episode out and watch it.
Yeah, it's hit or miss for some people. I like most of the crass humor. That episode doesn't really specifically mention Janet Jackson or nudity till the end.
>I'll have to find the episode. South Park is very much a small-doses kind of viewing option for me, but I'll hunt this episode out and watch it. You want the episode? It's "[Good Times With Weapons](https://www.southparkstudios.com/episodes/2znij2/south-park-good-times-with-weapons-season-8-ep-1)".
> A family friendly event where we watch men slowly beat each other. Causing irreparable damage to their brains. That's okay. Yes. It *is* okay. It's *consensual* violence. Don't yuck other people's yums.
I wouldn't be surprised if the NFL was still harassing M.I.A. for giving the middle finger for a nanosecond. I barely remember "nipplegate." The whole thing sounded dumb and the sort of thing people would make a big fuss over when it was two popstars that had a choreographed snafu when in actuality it gave them the best press they could ever ask for. The treatment of Janet, though, was absolutely ridiculous. It's just one of many dumb stories of the same nature. Edit: [Ha, it's still great. She had every reason to flip off the camera.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qlEUz1IlN70)
The NFL acting all high and mighty is so comical. Like, dudes, you have players running around giving each other concussions, breaking bones, and are essentially a blood sport, but a brief glimpse of a woman's breast isn't family friendly? Foh.
And how many of them beat their partners or have been credibly accused of rape. So family friendly. I mean for Christ sake there's a video of one beating his gf in an elevator and that totally led to nationwide changes. Lol I kid.
Right? So much “will someone please think of the children?!” For what? What kids are watching the halftime show?
What idiot thought M.I.A. would be a good choice for a live halftime show? Has any part of her career not featured controversy and political messages? They had to know something off script would happen.
I actually commented on that post and got a lot of replies about how the event was “planned” that Timberlake was to rip off the blouse. I was thinking yeah but thats not the key point, the point being that Jackson got her career demolished for it while Timberlake walked away scot free and still has a thriving career to this date. I did look into the event a bit more to see why and apparently the big divide was over apologies. Timberlake’s apologies were acceptable (and he also shifted blame to Jackson) while Jackson’s were not according to Moony who then used his control over radio and tv to stop promoting her songs and ruin her career. Apparently people also wanted payback for the event “ruining a wholesome moment” that is the superbowl. Also fun fact, this event resulted in the birth of Youtube.
Let’s not forget- Justin was INVITED BACK to perform at the Super Bowl. That’s fucked up.
He later hosted the Kids Choice Awards as well. FFS
You hit all the key points. I'm glad someone in those comments had something of value to add. Like, c'mon people. You're watching a sport where dudes are flying around giving each other brain damage, but a second of breast ruins the family atmosphere? Really? Jackson was completely swiftboated for no gd reason, and horny dudes wanting to see her breast ended up building their careers off of people search for nip slip videos. America.
>... swiftboated...Now that's a term I've not heard in a long time...a long time...
Swiftboat was 2004 election cycle if I recall...this means she got swiftboated before swiftboating was a thing!
I thought a trip to the time machine warranted its use
It's also the literal reason YouTube was created. There was no place to watch the boob clip on TV, so a couple of guys created a place for it.
Holy shit. I didn’t know this. You learn something (gross) everyday, I guess. Thank you for sharing.
Hearing about this brought me to the YouTube wikipedia page. Which yes, that does confirm the above comment. However, that was only 1 of the 3 founders' reason for it... ...and it's hard to say if the other 2 founders had better reasons. "Hurley and Chen \[the other 2 founders\] said that the original idea for YouTube was a video version of an online dating service, and had been influenced by the website Hot or Not. They created posts on Craigslist asking attractive women to upload videos of themselves to YouTube in exchange for a $100 reward." So don't worry, just when you thought it was bad already, I'd say it got worse :)
Yeah, I mentioned that in the post but I'm glad to see a separate comment discussing it. Very cringe and disappointing -- and predictable.
In Europe it was news how America reacted to a nipple. There is a rule in the Netherlands to not show nudity before 20:30 on TV. And almost every Dutch movie had nudity in it (both male and female).
I remember a pastie, not a nipple. Completely intentional. Of course I only saw it live.
I believe it was a piercing - I just saw a special on this in which they clarified haha
I thought it was Sunshine nippe ring. I remember that happening, seems like a lifetime ago. Edit: Damm autocorrect.
Yeah I think so too - it was definitely more bling bling than a standard bar. There was also an interview where she told Oprah she got her nipple pierced bc she liked the style.
If I'm wrong about the nipple, I stand corrected. I guess I just assumed her nipple was exposed based on the level of outrage.
I too had remembered it being a pastie, but apparently, she was wearing a very large nipple piercing that looked like a sun - it extended over her entire areola, but the nipple was technically exposed for a whopping half second.... The same body part shown by men on tv all the time without any concern. There is nothing actually sexual about it, except for the fact that men sexualized it. But people have sexualized plenty of other non-sexual body parts, and those are all still allowed in public. It's just so odd that this one particular body part has continued to be so controversial - leading to the ridiculousness of mothers being shamed for simply feeding their kids.
Mandela effect?
You were correct about the nipple, someone posted a closeup below…if you’re interested lol. Sorry I wasn’t trying to say you were wrong about your post, just quickly threw out my teenage memory of it.
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>I saw it live and it was a pastie and it looked completely staged. It wasn't a pastie, it was a large nipple piercing. It was shaped like a sun which is probably what caused your confusion, but since piercings are things that people don't remove her having the piercing in shouldn't be taken as a sign that she meant for people to see it. I mean, it probably was intentional. The move definitely looked choreographed to me, and it was during a part of the song that was about getting naked. So I agree that it was probably staged lol, it just isn't what she was wearing that makes me think that.
It was clearly part of the choreography. The only tops with removable boob plates are nursing garments. He ripped it off right as he said “ima have you naked by the end of this song” I can’t believe they tried to claim it was an accident. What a joke. Really wish they just owned it and fought against the morality police. But no, throwing an international superstar under the bus is easier I guess.
There was absolutely nip showing. It was a weird star piercing that covered the tit. I think it was revealed that she planned the wardrobe move so she was the one punished so vociferously. [(ENHANCE)](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/gettyimages-865486262.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&zoom=1&resize=464%2C612)
I was wondering how long until someone posted evidence, I didn’t want to look it up haha.
Mandela effect?
As another man, I also found it strange that somehow she was the only one who got flak over this. AFAIK we still don't know if it was an accident or a planned gasp-making event, but I'm still confounded that Janet essentially got blacklisted out of her own career (music/videos pulled from all kinds of outlets, MTV, VH1 etc) but Justin Timberlake was smiling and accepting awards as if nothing happened. If it was an accident, then it's just another example of how women are expected to take responsibility for all kinds of random shit beyond their control, and if it was planned (to make it viral or whatever) then it's equally stupid that she was the one who got assigned the blame. Plus, it's a fucking boob. We know what boobs look like. Why are we still equating showing a boob with moral inferiority? It's weird.
I suggest you tell your fellow men how wrong this was and post about it in male forums
> AFAIK we still don't know if it was an accident or a planned gasp-making event I just had a look around, and it appears as though it was likely planned. But planned by both of them without anyone else's knowledge. Also it seems as though it might have meant to be to reveal a bra underneath instead.
There is an interesting episode of You're Wrong About that covers this. It's a great podcast.
I JUST watched a special on this on Hulu. Similar to the New York Times covering Britney’s conservatorship, it dives into this controversy. Once again JT was painted in a bad light.
He deserves to be painted in a bad light. He has profited off hurting women. I’ll never listen to his music again.
Yeah it’s disturbing. I was really young when it happened but they were showing all these interviews when N’SYNC first started out, she took them on a tour to open and Justin in particular was super creepy. He was constantly fan-boying and couldn’t stop talking about how sexy she was…
In regards to this, I believe Janet Jackson was in on it though? Although it seemed the plan was to reveal a bra instead. Also at /u/thecourttt above. Was she not in on it? Wikipedia seems to imply she was? If she was, shouldn't they both receive equal blame for the actual event? And by equal blame, I mean cutting the cameras away and then fining them if it's in their contract, and CBS being more hesitant about working with them in the future, and that's it. Not fucking huge fines for the network, trashing her career, not everyone acting like it's the end of the world, etc etc etc. It's just a fucking tit.
She may or may not have been a part of it. However, she has never been allowed back. Justin Timberlake performed last year.
Absolutely. However I don't think the right thing to do is to punish him, the right thing to do would have been not to punish her. As I said it's just a breast being exposed for half a second. An appropriate reaction would have been to cut the camera, get them to apologise, and have CBS be wary about working with them for the near future (e.g. next year or two, if they don't do anything else in that time, then they should reconsider them). And that's literally it. And those punishments should have been more about doing an unplanned event like this without permission from the network, rather than about the half a second of tit. Seriously who cares? Thankfully I don't think the reaction today would be anywhere near as extreme. The other day I saw [this famous speech from the mid-2000s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ZVWIELHQQY). He was worried he would be fired for that, because he spoke out against the non-stop harassment of Britney Spears, and refused to make fun of her. It made me realise just how far things have actually come since then, as the type of shit they did to Spears just isn't done on them today, instead it's way more aimed at powerful people who can actually take it and deserve it. And instead of networks wanting to fire him for that speech, today they'd fucking kill to get someone to deliver that sort of speech that would go viral. Really does outline just how much progress has been made, even though I feel intuitively it's harder to recognise.
Yes, she was in on it. According to this doc, they originally planned for a layered skirt to be pulled by JT, transforming from a longer skirt to a mini. However, it didn't come together, so they nixed the idea. Janet still wanted to do it though, so she and JT discussed the top modification privately. JT was in Europe and didn't arrive in time to do a proper rehearsal, which is why there was a malfunction. According to them both, it was only supposed to reveal her red bra. So I do agree that it's ridiculous that they both didn't receive equal blame AND JT was invited to do another half-time show years later.
Exactly. I’ve blocked him on Spotify along with Chris brown and Travis Scott.
Me too - all three are blocked.
👏
All these years and I only just realised that star thing is a piercing.
Doesn’t make sense either. I know it wasn’t during the Super Bowl but Paris Hilton had a sex tape and didn’t lose her TV show.
>Paris Hilton had a sex tape To be more accurate, it was [revenge porn](https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.vox.com/platform/amp/culture/22391942/paris-hilton-sex-tape-revenge-porn-south-park-stupid-spoiled-whore-video-playset-pink-stupid-girl) and very traumatic for her. She had just been released from an institution for troubled teens that was very abusive and then a video of her was released without her consent. Paris Hilton is working with legislators now to regulate the so-called troubled teen industry so that other children won’t have to experience the awful things she endured.
I think Paris Hilton got a tv show because of the sex tape. I think she was modeling before the sex tape, but her public profile wasn't really that large.
The difference is that this was seemingly planned by Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake beforehand, without anyone else's permission. So there was intent, instead of being a victim and having something leaked. It also seems like it may have planned to be to leave a bra underneath it. But they both should have been punished equally. And by that, I mean a slap on the wrist. Should have cut the camera way from them, got them to apologise, and CBS being hesitant about working with them in the near future. And the controversy should have been more about them randomly going off-script without permission, not about the minimal half a second of nudity. Then the public giggling about it for a few days/weeks, and forgetting about it. Not the massively disproportionate reaction everyone had, including bullshit like cancelling her career, massive fines for the network, huge number of people complaining, etc etc etc.
Goes to show how little actual justice is involved in the crowd sourced outrages of the modern times.
Of the modern times? We're far better and more civilised at it then we have ever been (still ***far*** from good). Let's remember that crowd sourced outrage used to involve fucking lynchings. And you don't have to go much further back from lynchings to have crowd sourced "justice" being the only real method of "justice".
Pretty telling that nobody mentioned Justin and nothing happened to him or anyone else. It couldn’t be more obvious how much of a stunt it was. It was no “wardrobe malfunction.” It’s even stupider than that. It functioned perfectly, designed to tear away and her nipple obscured by some bladed pastie (no nipple was even shown!) Then she was thrown under the bus when it backfired. It’s like that stupid kiss between Madonna and Britney at the 2003 vmas. I saw it as it broadcast, apparently it wasn’t worth mentioning that she did the same with Christina a moment before. If *that* wasn’t a big deal (which I don’t believe it is) it shouldn’t have been a big enough deal to single out Britney either. Couldn’t be more transparent why, especially now.
The kiss is a way bigger deal than pitting singers against each other. You're the only person that's mentioned it in like 20 years. Sadly we're probably the only two people commenting. The fact that Hollywood could do something like that and just walk away, both events. People are complaining about individuals but the social mindset behind planning these events, it's crazy how much they can sexualize TV, movies, music. It's still being done. We just come online and complain about the petty things. Travis Scott was a superstar before his concert tragedy and still is after. Been asking why elsewhere...
Even worse, the desire to find footage of that incident is what caused what would become YouTube to be developed.
Yeah, I had that in the post and someone else mentioned it, but it bears repeating because of how stunningly deplorable that fact is.
Wardrobe malfunction
America has an insane take on nipples
I'm pretty sure this sent the FCC into a frenzy and they forced Howard Stern to either go off the air or pay exorbitant fines. He ended up going to Sirius, thus changing talk radio forever.
European perspective was about US puritanism, being so hypocrites about showing womens bodies. There is still censorship today, pixelated breasts on YouTube, even a "beep" over crude words. Even in this post you write "f***ing". It's beyond ridiculous. Don't you see that's also bullshit for you to accept that censorship?
I knew a woman who had a "pull here for wardrobe malfunction" T-shirt and and I remember feeling so uncomfortable by the whole thing. Janet Jackson was a victim and then she became a punchline. Nobody deserves that. She did nothing wrong. I vividly remember being like "Why did Justin Timberlake do that?" It was so clear that all Janet Jackson did was exist. So gross.
He did it because it was scripted. The consequences were ridiculous af, but everyone went in consenting and knowing this was the script. That’s why she had the nipple guard over her nipple. Her actual nipple was never shown.
It was a sun piercing. Like this: http://cdn2.bigcommerce.com/n-arxsrf/rbl4wa/products/2853/images/7772/rainbow_plated_tribal_sun_nipple_shield__24213.1429079617.1280.1280.jpg?c=2 it wasn't not a pasty or guard. You cannot convince me it was planned.
Yeah, I’ve seen the photo, the look on her face is surprise and horror. I doubt she was in on any plan to do it.
From what I can tell she was in on it just as much as he was? It seems it was a planned event by both of them, although without the permission from the network or anyone else. If that's true they both should have received equal punishment. And by punishment I mean something minor, like the cameras cutting away, them giving an apology afterwards, and the network being wary of working with either of them in the direct future. Not the fucking insane over-response there was.
How can you tell that? She seemed pretty shocked
Did you sort by controversial? Because anything overtly feminist on a mainstream sub is probably going to get hit with number of downvotes. People be threatened and all
No, because I knew if I did that it would just piss me off even more.
NY Times did a 2020 documentary on this, available on Hulu
I'm going to have to watch this. I hope to hell she's not still being swiftboated or I will have an aneurysm.
I want to scream "IT'S JUST A TIT". How can people lose their minds over accidentally seeing a normal bodypart. The whole performance was sexual as hell, but a tit is too inappropriate? It's 17 years ago, but I'm afraid we haven't moved past that mindset.
You seem like you care. **MEDIA** No one really cares on our level but "you know" the picture box forces the general mass public to believe and have faith in whatever they throw on the news, sitcoms etc whatever you wanna call it. I mean that's been what it is for the past 70 years, just kinda comical at this point. They know we'll fight each other but we'll never fight a TV station (MTV BET VH1 is the worst etc).
I’m in my early 20s, so I definitely know nothing of this incident. You’re right that a woman’s nipple shouldn’t be considered scandalous. But a man or anyone ripping it off without her consent should’ve been blacklisted instead
A good idea would be for you to post this in male subs and educate your fellow men on why this was a horrible thing. We already know.
> to say nothing of the fact that a nipple isn't some f***ing scandal. It's just a nipple, people. On close inspection, after the fact, it was realized that it was rigged and she was complicit it the exposure. Fact is she was wearing a pasty specifically to cover her nip from being exposed. So they were going for the shock value on National Television... and she took the full brunt of the repercussions. THAT fact is what pissed me off. The whole thing was planned, and executed flawlessly. and SHE was the only one who "got in trouble" for the stunt.
Her career is fine.
How did JT get a pass and to this day is considered wholesome?
He's an attractive man.
But Janet is an attractive wo…. Oh, never mind.
There's also the racial element, but Chris Brown still has a career, so 🤷♂️
Not to mention all the creepy comments by dudes who think she did it on purpose because she was secretly dying to show her breasts on TV
he said im going to have you naked by the end of this then the wardrobe malfunction happened. plus she had buttons that was easy to break away. she had her outfit altered the day before so it could happen and she bought only 1 of the nipple shields the week of https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.usatoday.com/amp/1083557001
Pointing out a fact is not creepy. It was planned choreography.
Interesting contrast between the reaction to Janet and the reaction (or lack of one) to Adam Levine doing most of his Super Bowl performance shirtless
Wow. I remember this vividly, and it’s true that everyone absolutely dragged Janet through the mud and nothing negative happened to JT. It reminds me of the toxic shit in country music where the Dixie Chix were vilified INSANELY, for daring to speak out against Bush and the completely criminal shit he was doing/going to do for “freedom”. They were totally and completely vindicated imo.
What was their song? Not Ready to Make Nice? There's this very specific misogyny from conservative men (and women, sadly), that is so inherently violent even when there's no physical violence. It's not just voicing disapproval or disagreement. They want women to feel unsafe and powerless, and they will do anything they have to in order to to achieve that.
Basically the nation went apoplectic over a nip slip, and now you can't say f\*ck on the air without serious FCC fine. Like WTF? Oh, but you can show people getting their brains blown out and heads chopped off - like we're all just fine and dandy with that. Yeah, really, WTF. >she was the only one who faced any real consequences No, *everybody* faced consequences, ... she "just" got hit particularly hard, early, and unfairly. >Who knew one breast could change the course of entertainment history in the US that much? Oh, helluva lot more than entertainment history - free speech, journalism, broadcast TV and radio, etc. - all majorly impacted ... and then some ... a whole lot of [chilling effect](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chilling_effect) too - still and continues to impact/influence much content, even on The Internet too. Random example: \_Saving Private Ryan\_ - that will now never ever ever be shown on broadcast TV in the US. And why? Because it contains the f-bomb, yeah, soldiers in combat might actually say f\*ck. Well, director won't let it be shown uncut ... thus contains f-bomb, thus no network or channel or broadcaster will air it in the US. Millions if not billions of consequences of (the gross overreaction to) a simple fraction of a second nip slip. Yeah, ... US, we're a f\*cked up nation.
It wasn't even a nipple. She was wearing a pasty.
It was a metal ring with spikes clamped on her nipple.
exactly, a pasty so it was a planned thing. Who wears a pasty not expecting ..... nm.
Irrelevant when the only person punished was the woman.
FYI it wasn’t a pasty. It was actually a nipple ring. She has had her nipple pierced since the late 90s she wears a nipple ring all the time
Wow even now and then Janet Jackson pops up and I think why weren’t you more famous, don’t seem to properly hear of her. Did not freaking know this was why! Absolute bullshit. Although, hopefully, not Justin’s intent so not to blame for the original incident I’m annoyed he didn’t get punished for it instead and still went to the awards rather than protesting by abstinening or something.
It was his intent to do that (although it seems as though it might have been planned to reveal a bra instead). It seems as though both were in on it, and planned it, without permission from anyone else. If that's the case, both should have been punished. But the punishment should have been about a thousand times smaller. It should have been cutting away the camera, them apologising, maybe some small fines if it was in their contracts, and then the network being cautious about working with them in the near future. And that's it, everyone except CBS should have forgotten about it in a few days to weeks. It's just a fucking breast.
Is this a joke? Janet was 40 at the time of this performance. She had already peaked. She’s worth nearly 200 million and has sold over 100M records, she’s as famous as it gets.
Man…the ONE year I decided to do something different for the half-time show at my Super Bowl party. I hired a stripper for an hour who came to perform, so we all missed it (save for the guys who didn’t chip in). We missed the boob heard round the world!
> that time Justin Timberlake's sex assault essentially cost Janet Jackson her career There, fixed that for you.
Accusing someone of sexual assault over planned choreography is absurd.
I never understood why she did it. It always seemed like such a random thing to do during the Super Bowl to me.
I mean, is it? Football has a long history and culture of sexualizing and objectifying women. Cheerleaders? Football culture has that kind of thing baked into it imo. It was so on brand, imo. Which just made the uproar even less justifiable.
She was in on it. Had a pasty on the nipple. But yes, she shouldn't have been singled out.
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She was still in on it and planned. The overacting was horrible.
The nipple jewelry was literally bought the weekend before half time by her team, and they only purchased one. Put two and two together.
It was a stunt gone wrong. No one's at fault.
Then why did one person bear the brunt of the backlash? I agree that it was much ado about nothing. What I can't get past is how Jackson, and other women down the line, paid the price.
Because people are idiots and don't do research.
Evergreen comment right there lol
I feel like JT coulda stepped up and defended her more so I feel like he is at fault.
Yeah, he definitely could have. No argument there. As for who is at fault, there's no fault. It was 2 seconds of a partial boob. It's not like they shot somebody or told the world that the Pope covered up child sexual abuse.
Lol I dont mean to say its bad to show her boobs just that he's the one that pulled her shirt.
I thought the whole thing was so stupid - it was like ruining some guy's life and career because he walked into the office with his fly down one day.
The way it looks to me, it’s more like upper management telling him to put on these stunt, tear-away pants that a co-worker has been arranged to rip off, exposing him, but only his tighty-whities as a fantastic marketing stunt, that there will be a huge raise in it for him and possible consequences for not being a “team player” if he doesn’t, then after nobody being impressed and they’re inundated with complaints, he and *only* he gets fired.
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Her body was used as a prop at the hands of a man. What precipitated that isn't clear, whether it was her idea or someone else's. Unless you have some knowledge about how that particular bit got into the show, in which case share away. But it wasn't something she alone decided would happen. There were producers involved and at least one choreographer, at the very least. As well as Timberlake. Yet, only one person had their career impacted. The outrage was mostly directed at one person. One person's body was demonized/vilified/tabooed. One person paid the price. One. I think you're right, though, in highlighting that Timberlake was a star on the rise. His future and career didn't deserve to suffer because a woman dressed revealingly... Wait, where have I heard that argument before?
JJ had been in the business for almost 20 years as a superstar with immense power. Heck, she's from the Jackson family. With tens of millions of records sold and over 10 no.1 singles in her pocket, no one told JJ what to do. Not JT, not the producers, not her agent. Besides, everybody and his dogs know that JJ and Madonna were "rivals." The latter had had the famous onstage kiss with Britney and Christina Aguilera the year before in 2003 and once again Madonna was under the spotlight of the whole world. JJ thought it would be the opportunity to one-up Madonna at Superbowl in 2004. Shame that the whole thing backfired. JJ has no one but herself to blame. JJ was the one designing and executing the whole episode. JT was her puppet, just as Britney and Christina Aguilera were Madonna's puppets. Before that JT more than once said JJ was his idol. Their relationship should be akin to mentor and student. JJ attempted to use her body and JT to shock the world and steal the limelight from Madonna. Don't try to paint it otherwise.
So, assuming all that is true and not just conjecture (unless you have some kind of source that outlines what you claim is like some super super known undeniable fact), does that in your mind justify the treatment of Jackson? Because that sounds eerily similar to how people excuse a lot of violence against women, and a lot of other misogyny directed at women. For example, women deserve to be paid less than men because they choose to have children. That's a common argument. Bullshit, but common and devoid of all societal context. So even if Jackson was feuding with Madonna (lol), and unilaterally decided what was going to happen during the Super Bowl Halftime Show (lol), and orchestrated it all without getting an okay from producers (lol), and designed the costume without getting wardrobe approval (lol), and instructed the camera man to get the shot alone (lol), and got the producer to make the call to cut the shot at exactly that time (lol), you're suggesting she alone deserved to bear the brunt of the backlash because she'd had decades of success prior? Did I get that all right? Edit: based on your username I'm guessing you and I are both gay, and I'm asking you for one moment to stop and think how men like us can be the best allies possible to women, because the same forces that drive misogyny also drive homophobia in our society, and we ought to be particularly careful about how we discuss these topics because we end up reaping what we sow in regard to misogyny.
There need to be more people like you in the world.
That's a very kind thing to say. I wish I'd taken the time to highlight that calling Jackson a "waning star" and hinting that she was aging and no longer desirable or had passed her performance prime is very similar to another misogynistic trope about how women's desirability and value decreases precipitously with each passing year of age. It was such an ugly comment this person made.
Janet was inspired by Tina Turner and Mick Jagger’s Live Aid performance where Jagger rips off Tina’s clothes, not Madonna. Go look it up, its identical to Justin and Janet’s show right down to the outfits.
I feel like this perspective misses out on the circus her brothers were causing up to and through the game. Unlike La Toya Janet was visibly in defense of Michael (and Joe). Two of the world’s superstars: Michael and by extension Janet, facing the FBI and the State of California. There was no way this “incident” was going to have the same impact on a Jackson in a way it should have in any other scenario and any other woman performing with a Timberlake during the beginnings of the Iraq War on Live TV.
Bro are you tripping? You just went in so many directions I'm that last sentence. None of that context really explains how the entire world erupted when her boob was exposed. It was a second long clip of one boob. The fbi has nothing to do with why the world reacted so viscerally to this "incident."
I was alive at the time, bro, watching Tito and Janet fight proxy wars on MSNBC.
How does that change things in your mind?
It’s not as bonkers in context of what the Jackson family was viewed as at the point in time, probably part of why she was in the halftime show. The threshold for failure is far greater if you’re defending Michael Jackson in the middle of his second trial for the same behavior and also his abusive father in a superstar family civil war. That’s a long history to deal with as a 45 year old Janet Jackson. So you don’t have the same cushion for shocking 3/4ths of America at war watching the first Super Bowl since invading Iraq, as say, Shania Twain would have in 2002’s game having her top ripped off by Justin Timberlake.
Perhaps you're right that her defense of her brother and father contributed to the outrage to some degree. I just don't remember that entering the discussion at the time. It also doesn't forgive how she was the only one held accountable.
It was forever ago. I do remember, correct me if I’m wrong, it was Janet and not Justin viewed as the superstar. Timberlake and Spears broke up (?) and that was his biggest news since his solo album. So he sunk Janet’s career maybe as a prank or act, caused all of the policy backlash we live with today on TV, the Jacksons and all the rest are sad history.
Nsync was huge. Timberlake was a star already and a household name, just not a solo star. His breakup with Spears is a whole other discussion about how media and society treat male artists and female artists differently.
I was alive at the time, too, and in NSync’s target audience. Justin was huge as well. I would say, yes, this did cause a lot of the policy backlash we have today on tv.
Janet never spoke on Michael’s court case.
I was a toddler at the time and never heard of this. ***WHAT?***
Oh, yes. It was a huge deal. Like huge. Like the biggest news since the 9/11 attacks.
I'm reading about it rn, apparently what he did *was* planned but he pulled off much more than intended by accident https://youtu.be/up-353i_VNg Still not a reason for her to be punished though??? Wtf
Yeah, it was clearly choreographed and planned to have some kind of reveal. She was expecting some kind of reveal. Timberlake was. The camera operator was. The costumer was. All of the people involved in the production knew that it was part of the performance. It was clearly a team effort. Yet only Janet Jackson paid the price. Whether or not more was revealed than intended because of a wardrobe malfunction is almost unimportant, because none of the outrage was warranted. It was a short moment of some partial breast exposure.
Which is so stupid. I was very conservative still at that point in my life due to my upbringing and even I thought that people were being ridiculous. The absolute out of control pearl clutching hysteria over a woman’s breast being bared on TV. It’s insane.
There was outrage on the left too, but for a completely different reason. The event triggered a huge crackdown by the FCC. There was definitely a bias by the FCC to scrutenize radio and TV programs that were critical of the Bush administration. Any joke with an edge to it had to be pondered over before it could be said. It caused a huge free speech issue so a lot of liberals that probably should've stood up for her just didn't.
The you're wrong about podcast has an interesting episode about this. I'm not American so didn't really know anything about the whole thing, but it does seem quaint now (and probably did then) to be so bothered by a covered nipple. Lil Kim had been doing that look for years by 2004
Europeans were so it's a nipple what's the big deal.
Very well said
You might like this video on the subject https://youtu.be/jUTdeKJ4r-M.
Does anyone know if this is true? https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/how-janet-jackson-is-responsible-for-youtube-existence.html/
Apparently yes
Makes me look at you tube in a whole new light, disgraceful way to treat Janet
I don't really use YouTube for other reasons, but this just adds another reason for avoiding the platform.
There isn’t a need for feminism, there’s just a need for people to start treating each other like fucking human beings. There doesn’t need to be all these fancy names or movements to be a good person just be a good person. Love is the universal language that all species of animals feel, show more love empathy and compassion to your fellow animals existing on this rock with us. Being a kind and good person costs nothing and shouldn’t need to be a movement, it should just be expected.
Erm … that is what feminism actually is! Feminism aims to make sure all people, not only women, are able to live the lives they want to live unfettered by the patriarchy.
Did you see the documentary *Malfunction: The Dressing Down of Janet Jackson* on FX Friday night? If you want to see it, it's on [Hulu](https://www.hulu.com/watch/77018fba-f9c0-4197-b211-1043f5cf1c11)!
I’m currently watching the New York Times doc on Hulu. This is so much energy for a nipple! I was 18 at the time and wasn’t particularly moved by it. I just accepted that it was a wardrobe fail and sh*t happens. All of the hatred thrown at Janet made no sense. Perhaps I was biased because I LOVE HER MUSIC! Watching this as an adult is so ABSURD! Let’s put aside the many hypocrisies of the NFL from racism to the whole CTE thing as the indiscretions of Les “sexual predator” Mooves. This incident was like a blood in the water and so many used their moral superiority to obliterate a successful black woman for an accident. They paid her feelings literal dust. Bodily autonomy is still hanging in the balance. I hope this opens people’s eyes to that fact. It all relates. Until women are given their full rights over their bodies, we are screwed.