Top 10 Biggest NBC Scandals & Controversies

In 2010, the struggle over who would anchor NBC’s long-running franchise “The Tonight Show” became one of the network’s worst PR nightmares. Jay Leno had hosted since 1992, but he was given his own primetime show in 2009 to make way for Conan O’Brien as the new face. Despite his star power, Leno’s show suffered poor ratings which, in turn, affected those of O’Brien’s. NBC proposed moving Leno back to late-night and giving O’Brien a later time slot, but the latter vehemently refused. The conflict received significant media attention with O’Brien drawing a lot of online support. In the end, Leno was reinstated as host of “The Tonight Show” while O’Brien and his staff were paid a reported $45 million to leave the network.

In the late 2000s, “Mad Men” premiered on the cable network AMC, receiving widespread acclaim and becoming a ratings success. Hoping to cash in on the ‘60s phenomenon, NBC announced “The Playboy Club,” a historical crime drama focused on the employees of the eponymous chain, which first opened in Chicago. Even before its pilot aired, “The Playboy Club” began generating controversy. The conservative group Parents Television Council protested against the show, claiming that it objectified women and glamorized adult entertainment. Even famed feminist activist Gloria Steinem called for a boycott of the series. With low viewership and advertisers pulling their support, NBC seemingly had no other option but to cancel “The Playboy Club” after just three episodes.

When it premiered in 2004, the reality show “The Biggest Loser” became a ratings hit for NBC. The series featured contestants competing to win a cash prize by losing the most weight. While some participants ended up achieving this goal, criticism began to emerge regarding the show’s negative approach to health. This criticism was echoed by former contestants, who claimed that the series promoted rapid weight loss at the expense of their wellbeing. In fact, a 2016 study revealed that most of the participants regained the weight they lost after their time on the show. That year, NBC refused to renew “The Biggest Loser” for another season, although it did return to the NBC-owned USA Network in 2020.

In 2017, longtime Fox News personality Megyn Kelly moved to NBC, where she began hosting her talk show “Megyn Kelly Today”. Right off the bat, the show generated controversy for some of Kelly’s comments. In the first week alone, she was criticized for asking an audience member if he “became gay” by watching “Will & Grace,” as well as for questioning Jane Fonda about plastic surgery. But the tipping point came when Kelly made insensitive remarks during a segment discussing Halloween costumes and blackface. Her comments were deemed to be defensive of the derogatory practice and sparked outrage from her colleagues and viewers alike. Shortly after the incident, the show was canceled and Kelly terminated her contract with NBC.

After serving as a news anchor on the “Today” show for years, Ann Curry finally got promoted to co-host in 2011, following the departure of Meredith Vieira. Just one year later, NBC announced that Curry would be leaving the show, leading to widespread speculation about a forced exit. Many believed that her co-host Matt Lauer had a hand in her dismissal. This led viewers to turn to the show’s competition, ABC’s “Good Morning America,” bringing an end to “Today’s” historic dominance. On June 28th 2012, Curry gave a teary goodbye in her final show as a co-host. She remained with NBC News as a producer and correspondent, before leaving the program altogether in January 2015.

In 2012, the shooting death of Trayvon Martin by Florida neighborhood watch coordinator George Zimmerman sparked outrage and protests around the U.S. Amid the heated moment, NBC aired the 911 call made by Zimmerman on the night of the shooting. The version that was aired gave the impression that Zimmerman’s actions were racially motivated, which intensified the public sentiment. It was later revealed that NBC had edited the call, altering the context of Zimmerman’s words. The network faced significant backlash for this. As a result, they tendered a public apology and launched an investigation into the decision. Nonetheless, Zimmerman filed a defamation lawsuit against NBC, seeking “damages in excess of the jurisdictional limit”.

For decades, “NBC Nightly News” anchor Brian Williams reported the news from around the world. In 2015, he became the news. Williams had recounted an embellished story on the program, in which he claimed to have been aboard a helicopter that was downed by enemy fire during the Iraq War. However, several military veterans who were present at the time disputed his account. They clarified that Williams had been in a separate group of helicopters, half an hour behind that which was fired at. The anchor recanted his story and apologized on air, chalking the mix-up to a “fog of memory”. This incident severely damaged Williams’ credibility and resulted in his eventual removal from the “Nightly News” desk.

In October 2017, investigative journalist Ronan Farrow published an article in The New Yorker that brought to light numerous misconduct allegations against film producer Harvey Weinstein. The exposé played a pivotal role in igniting the global MeToo movement and helped bring Weinstein to justice. But according to the journalist, this bombshell report may never have made it to the public. Farrow claims that while working on the story for NBC News, he faced stiff opposition from top executives at the broadcasting company. He believes that this was done, in part, to conceal the allegations against their own anchor Matt Lauer. In the end, Farrow took his story to The New Yorker and received a shared Pulitzer Prize in 2018.

Just one month before the hotly contested 2016 U.S. presidential election, a taped conversation between Billy Bush and Donald Trump was released by The Washington Post. The clip was recorded back in 2005 during a taping of the NBCUniversal show “Access Hollywood,” which Bush anchored at the time. In it, Trump made lewd and offensive remarks about women while Bush laughed in the background. Two days later, NBC suspended Bush from his co-hosting role at the “Today” show and he was ultimately fired. He later blasted the network, claiming that everyone there knew about the tape before it was released to the public. Despite the backlash that Bush and NBC faced, Trump still went on to win the presidential election.

Over a span of 20 years, Matt Lauer was the face of NBC’s “Today” show. He remained one of NBC’s biggest stars until November 2017 when he was fired from the network. This came as a result of multiple allegations of inappropriate behavior and sexual misconduct in the workplace. NBC claimed to have been unaware of Lauer’s actions, but these claims were heavily disputed by several individuals who worked at the company. According to Ronan Farrow, NBC executives allegedly suppressed his exposé about Harvey Weinstein because the producer used the information about Lauer as leverage against them. The company has seemingly implemented measures to address workplace harassment since then. This includes increased training and a more efficient reporting system.