Skip to content
News

NBC Refuses to Air Madonna Crucifixion in Concert Special

NBC will not show images of Madonna perched on a crucifix when it airs the singer’s concert special in November. The portion of the show, which has caused controversy in places like Rome and Moscow, features Madonna singing “Live to Tell” while suspended from a mirrored cross, wearing a crown of thorns. In interviews this year, Madonna said the scene is meant to encourage mankind to help one another.

Fearing backlash from religious groups who told the network they would boycott one of the concert’s commercial sponsors if the cross scene was shown, NBC opted to nix that scene from its two-hour concert special, set to air Nov. 22, according to AP. While NBC head Kevin Reilly did not explain its decision to reporters, Bill Donahue, president of the Catholic League, told the AP that “NBC did the right thing, but the fact that it did not say why the offensive part of Madonna’s concert was cut shows cowardice.” NBC still plans to show the performance of “Live to Tell,” but will cut to other camera angles during the crucifixion portion.

Talk: Do you think NBC made the right decision? COMMENT

On SPIN.com:
Madonna Defends Mock Crucifixion
Madonna Stirs Up New Controversy

On the Web:
madonna.com