Saturday Night Live has a long history of toeing the line between funny and offensive, and the sketch series’ most recent episode was no exception.
The show tackled topics ranging from Kim Kardashian’s nude photos to the hacking scandal at Sony Pictures, and, of course, the recent events in Ferguson, Missouri.
While multiple jokes inspired by the rioting and racial tension in the St. Louis area did make it into the broadcast, one sketch was cut, allegedly as a result of NBC execs’ belief that it would outrage viewers:
According to the official explanation, the sketch was cut due to "time constraints," but given the amount of crap that makes its way into the average 90-minute SNL episode, we doubt the fact that the show just had too much quality content on its hands was really the issue.
Granted, this week’s James Franco-hosted installment was probably the iconic sketch show’s best offering of the season, with musical guest Nicki Minaj gamely stepping in to impersonate Kim Kardashian and poke fun at the addictive nature of her own booty-centric music videos.
Even so, producers must have known that if they’d stuck with the Ferguson morning show sketch, it likely would have become the viral clip of the week. Which may be exactly why they chose to cut it from the broadcast.