The BAFTAs Controversy: Entertainment Media Must Do Better In Handling Harmful Content

Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo onstage at the 2026 BAFTA Awards

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I don’t think I’ll ever forget the first time someone called me the N-word: the one with the hard -er. I was innocently standing outside my college apartment: walking by the sidewalk, heading around the corner as a car came toward me from behind. I was sure that I was out of their way, but to my surprise, they didn’t believe so. As I turned the corner and they did also, then came that horrific word from out of their mouth. “You f–king n—er!!”, a White male shouted out of the window at me with such hatred and contempt. At that moment, I felt a range of emotions. For someone to use that word in modern times felt especially hateful. Suddenly, I felt decades of pain at that moment. I was jarred, confused, and felt belittled. Honestly, I was also thankful that the guy was in a car and I was on foot. Before that incident, I’d never been called that word; in that way, in my entire life. I couldn’t believe what I’d just heard, but for many African-Americans over time, that word has been used with just as much hate throughout history, and it was heard in their daily lives. 

This February was a significant one as we commemorated the 100th anniversary of celebrating Black History and the 50th anniversary of Black History Month. Sadly in the midst of celebration, there were a few disturbing incidents that happened in the media. Interestingly enough, Black History Month is supposed to be a time to recognize the progress, contributions, and achievements of African-Americans to society at large. In contrast, certain events have raised concern around the usage of deeply offensive language and imagery in the media. At the BAFTA awards in London on February 22, Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo took the stage to present an award. The British Academy Film Awards are presented by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts. The ceremony celebrates excellence in film and is the British equivalent to the Oscars. John Davidson, an activist with Tourette’s Syndrome, was in the audience for a film that was based on his life and career with the condition, called I Swear. At the beginning of the show, audience members were forewarned about his attendance and that they may hear some outbursts or inappropriate language being shouted. Jordan and Lindo were the first presenters of the night. A couple seconds into their speech, after he’d already had many earlier outbursts, Davidson shouted “N——ers!!” toward Jordan and Lindo onstage: shouting it twice. Both actors tried to keep their composure, but they were understandably shocked. The slur was also heard during the final broadcast and was not edited out. During another moment onstage, filmmakers Wale Davies and Akinola Davies Jr. said “Free Palestine” at the end of their acceptance speech and it was edited out of the broadcast. Reports have come out that there was a two hour delay between the live show and the broadcast, so there was time for the footage to be appropriately edited. Additionally, there were other insults thrown out by Davidson during the show that were edited out. 

Michael B. Jordan, Delroy Lindo, and John Davidson

Quite honestly, BAFTA and the BBC failed Michael B Jordan, Delroy Lindo, Black audience members, and its Black viewers around the world. While Davidson’s tic may not have been voluntary or intentional, it still doesn’t change the shock and horror that the presenters likely experienced while on stage. It also doesn’t change the horror that Black viewers felt while watching. As of now, most reports have given a disclaimer: verbal tics of Tourette’s Syndrome and coprolalia don’t necessarily reflect the viewpoints or mindsets of those who have it. This still doesn’t mask the absolute neglect of the situation on the part of the BBC and BAFTA. There are so many questions to ask. Did the organizations have prior knowledge of Davidson’s attendance? They most likely did. Does Davidson have a history of abruptly saying offensive slurs in the past? Was it appropriate to necessarily have him in the audience for the entire ceremony? It has also come out that it wasn’t Davidson’s first time using the slur. It was said to Wunmi Mosaku and Hannah Beachler, a member of the Sinners production team. There seem to be many excuses as to how the slur made the broadcast. While it is worth noting that separating Davidson from the rest of the audience because of his tics could be ableism, issues of racist language still cannot be overlooked. Davidson involuntarily shouted other insults throughout the night, but the N-word is in a class all by itself. That word is perhaps the most taboo word in all of the English language. When it was shouted, perhaps Davidson’s team should’ve politely escorted him out of the room instead of waiting for him to leave on his own. While it may have been seen as just a word that is used by a disabled man who can’t control his outburst, it is so much more harmful due to its history. I’d like to think Davidson would understand as he did ultimately leave out on his own. 

If we’re being completely honest, anti-Black racism has historically taken a backseat to many other forms of discrimination on levels of high priority. In 2026, this issue is intolerable and unacceptable. Of course, Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo being the incredible professionals they are, handled the situation with class. While this is certainly commendable, they are also human and deserve to be respected. Regardless of the scenario, Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo didn’t deserve to have to act with such grace while having racial insults thrown their way. Sadly many Black people, regardless of career, know all too well about having to respond in a safe and comfortable way, just to simply survive; to not offend others or make them feel unsafe even when they themselves have been disrespected or humiliated. Reports suggest that Davidson has reached out to both actors and their teams to offer an apology. The BBC let down the Black community and those with disabilities by its negligence to edit out the outburst. With Sinners, Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo are in the most nominated film of all time during the Oscars race but were startled in front of their peers and the public by a racial slur during a celebratory moment. Also, imagine being Davidson where your involuntary outburst is now being broadcast worldwide? The BBC and BAFTA need to continue to be investigated accordingly for this situation. That moment should’ve never been heard during the final broadcast, especially since there was editing done to censor political commentary. Jordan and Lindo deserved an immediate apology after the incident and for the situation to be formally addressed during the broadcast on social media. It took days for them to receive an apology, and that was because of widespread public backlash. That is completely unacceptable. 

To those who try to make a point by saying that many in the Black community already use the N-word and it isn’t a big deal, there is a major difference between a reclamation and a racial slur. Black people mostly use the word ending in -a and do not usually use the word ending in -er. Black people have reclaimed the word for usage in their own community such as in the same way as for a friend. It is absolute the community’s right to turn a painful word into an endearing one if we so choose. It is no different than what women have done with b*tch or the LGBTQ+ community has done with queer. As a society, we must ask what is the difference? Why are other communities allowed to evolve but the Black community cannot? These communities have taken words that were used to diminish and hurt them and have turned them into words that identify or empower. But make no mistake: the N-word has and will continue to be taboo for non-Black people to use it. 

BAFTA Award Trophies

This is not the only incident of negligence by media executives. Also in February, during a segment with Piers Morgan, Megyn Kelly went on a bizarre and unhinged rant by expressing her deep disdain for Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl Halftime Show. Throughout her conversation, Kelly criticized his performance; one of her main gripes being that the show was performed predominantly in Spanish. At a certain point, she said that the show was “a middle finger to the rest of America”. She continued, “who gives a damn that we have 40 million Spanish speakers in the United States? We have 310 million who don’t speak a lick of Spanish. This is supposed to be a unifying event for the country, not for the Latinos, not for one small group, but for the country. We don’t need a Black national anthem. We don’t need a Spanish-speaking non-English performer. And we don’t need an ICE or America hater featured as our primetime entertainment.” When saying, “not for the Latinos”, Kelly put on a fake Spanish language accent to further prove her point. Kelly has a history of saying remarks that are tone deaf, offensive, and ignorant. As it stands today, Puerto Rico is a part of the United States. As a nation, we must ask ourselves, is it worth it to get that passionate about a halftime show? Aren’t there more pressing issues to worry about? In another incident on February 5, the Trump administration released a video of Barack and Michelle Obama being depicted as apes in a jungle. The video continued to circulate online overnight until it was finally removed after widespread outrage. Initially White House staffers defended the video by saying that Donald Trump didn’t post the video, blaming an unnamed staffer as the source. 

Entertainment and political media must do better to combat the spread of harmful, dangerous, and offensive content across platforms. While America is a free country with citizens expressing free speech, it must still respect the rights of those from marginalized communities. Thorough screenings must be conducted in hiring producers, reporters and journalists, cameramen crews, and show runners. Simply doing the general hiring procedures seems to not be enough at times. The incidents we have seen as of late are inexcusable, especially in modern times. There are so many active threats at the federal level against DEI and other initiatives but as a country we cannot afford to go back to earlier times where offensive language and actions become commonplace. It has been said for many years now that real journalism is dying. Media professionals have a responsibility to report the news of today but they should also pledge to protect those who are most vulnerable to offensive attacks. Proper media and journalism should always reflect the times and we must hold our national and international media accountable for the manner in which they discuss people of color. As a country, we cannot let this pattern continue or let history repeat itself.