CBS drops Rihanna football opener after she rips network
In the wake of the release of the Ray Rice elevator assault video, CBS made the decision to drop a musical opener last week featuring Rihanna performing the 2009 hit “Run This Town” because of the serious nature of their pre-game broadcast.
While many fans agreed that it was the right call, some argued that the singer was unjustly being punished for being the victim of domestic abuse at the hands of former boyfriend and pop star Chris Brown.
CBS planned on using the opener moving forward for their Thursday Night Football broadcasts – that was until the singer herself let her feelings be known. Rihanna took to Twitter today and put the network on “f-bomb” blast for the decision to her over 37 million followers:
Now the network has decided to change course per an official statement:
“Beginning this Thursday, we will be moving in a different direction with some elements of our Thursday Night Football open. We will be using our newly created Thursday Night Football theme music to open our game broadcast.”
It’s not clear if Rihanna or the network made the call but either way – she will not be a part of the broadcast. Do you think the “Umbrella” singer should feel “penalized” by CBS as she argues?
The audacity…
— Rihanna (@rihanna) September 16, 2014
