COMICSANDS
percolately
georgetakei
secondnexus
george's picks
In 2007, the ordeal Britney Spears was going through remained largely invisible to the outside world. What we knew is she'd shaved her head in front of the paparazzi and had some sort of difficult episode causing her to go after a few of them with an umbrella.
Now, with the release of the New York Times produced documentary, Framing Britney Spears, we all really see a newer side of the truth.
In the moment, Britney was getting lambasted by late-night comedians and talk show hosts alike for her erratic behavior, with the notable exception of Craig Ferguson.
Ferguson publicly refused to make fun of her in a resurfaced clip from his late night show making the rounds again after the documentary aired.
Never forget when Craig Ferguson refused to make fun of Britney Spears. https://t.co/r8AuiNPW0L— Britney Fan 🌹 (@Britney Fan 🌹)1612832782.0
Ferguson, citing the then-recent death of Anna Nicole Smith, said he was starting to feel "uncomfortable" going after these people so hard.
When an audience member laughed, he cut them off by saying, "it's not a joke."
"Comedy should have a certain amount of joy in it...It should be about us attacking the powerful people, attacking the politicians and the Trumps and the blowhards, going after them. We shouldn't be attacking the vulnerable people."
The fact that folks were so ready to laugh at Anna Nicole Smith that Craig Ferguson had to say “It’s not a joke!” https://t.co/VfGlzS6i4y— Monica Castillo (@Monica Castillo)1612845010.0
growing up with craig ferguson and geoff the skelly as your favorite late night hosts? a sign of good taste 💎 https://t.co/IIqIcHmBEX— jamieloftus 🏂 (@jamieloftus 🏂)1612890467.0
I remember this well. It was casually powerful and authentic in a way that stuck with me. Craig Ferguson was quite… https://t.co/40LhrIJA80— Charlotte Clymer 🏳️🌈 (@Charlotte Clymer 🏳️🌈)1612875003.0
@BritneyHiatus Here is Craig’s entire monologue. He speaks openly and vulnerably about his addiction issues, and wh… https://t.co/4mgMBRT2T9— Cassie Keet (@Cassie Keet)1612859693.0
Anna Nicole Smith’s death, for me, was one of the four horseman of realizing I probably wasn’t gonna make it in lat… https://t.co/VS4PymERcB— Caissie (@Caissie)1612887918.0
In the full monologue, Ferguson talked about his own issues with addiction and how it correlated to Britney's situation.
"The kind of weekend she had, she was checking in and out of rehab, she was shaving her head, getting tattoos, that's what she was doing this weekend. This Sunday, I was 15 years sober. So I looked at her weekend and I looked at my own weekend and I thought, 'You know, I'd rather have my weekend.'"
anyone else remember Craig Ferguson gently telling us in 2007 that hey maybe it's not funny that Britney Spears is… https://t.co/e3lSINh1uy— Amy, Mothman Festival Queen (@Amy, Mothman Festival Queen)1612840518.0
The revulsion over Diane Sawyer's grilling of Britney is not wrong. But Craig Ferguson--who had a nightly platform… https://t.co/ZGrv0ah2fx— Victoria Brownworth (@Victoria Brownworth)1612891652.0
@BritneyHiatus Punch up, not down. That's why there are no good Conservative comedians, their entire ethos is punch… https://t.co/L8KNY8LxoW— Andrew Littler (@Andrew Littler)1612864966.0
Craig Ferguson reminding us that comedy should be about punching up at the Trumps of the world, not punching down a… https://t.co/rS2bswJdjX— Disaster Time Lord (@Disaster Time Lord)1612848254.0
Craig Ferguson understands the problems with addiction and mental health. He's always been open about it and I'm so… https://t.co/js8IxXh5eb— Laura (she/her) (@Laura (she/her))1612855944.0
Ferguson also recognized Britney was still very young herself, with two children, and clearly was undergoing something that had spiraled out of her control.
Later on, Ferguson told the Los Angeles Times he thought he would have been fired for taking a clear stance contrary to what most other late-night hosts were doing, but "the opposite happened, and everyone seemed to be very happy about it."
@LATimesTVLloyd @BritneyHiatus The audience being uncomfortable stuck with me. Those people were used to being ente… https://t.co/EZQDvrAsrR— BKalli (@BKalli)1612871954.0
@BritneyHiatus Good morning to everyone, especially to Craig Ferguson. You deserve a great day , Sir! #FramingBritneySpears— Allison Vargas (@Allison Vargas)1612866406.0
craig ferguson refusing to make fun of britney spears when she was the daily punchline of every late night host https://t.co/pTCBPF6Tle— ♡ kiran ♡ (@♡ kiran ♡)1612847364.0
The fact that folks were so ready to laugh at Anna Nicole Smith that Craig Ferguson had to say “It’s not a joke!” https://t.co/VfGlzS6i4y— Monica Castillo (@Monica Castillo)1612845010.0
Late night television never deserved Craig Ferguson https://t.co/hPxXstzEYt— t r e s (@t r e s)1612883702.0
Ferguson's compassion lingers in the air well over a decade later, as the details of Britney's story come to light.
Culture surrounding that moment has changed since thirteen years ago, but many of us have work to do to be Craig Fergusons in our own lives.