BBC has apologized for sharing an image in which they captioned a photo of Viola Davis, “Beyoncé’s Big Night.” The network made the mistake during a broadcast on its news channel after the 2023 Grammy Awards. They later apologized in a statement on Twitter. BBC says that the error was not a case of mistaken identity but instead a technical issue.
“We apologize for the mistake last night when our news channels briefly showed a photograph of Viola Davis from January’s Golden Globes alongside a headline about Beyoncé at yesterday’s Grammys,” BBC said in the statement.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 15: Viola Davis attends the 28th Annual Critics Choice Awards at Fairmont Century Plaza on January 15, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic)
One journalist for the outlet added that the issue pertained to a “sequence about the other Grammy winners.” This is why it had indicated “Beyoncé’s big night.”
As for it being “Beyoncé’s big night,” the headline stemmed from the fact that the legendary singer became the most awarded artist in Grammys’ history. Following victories for Best Dance/Electronic Music Album, Best R&B Song, and more, Beyoncé reached 32 career wins. She also tied her husband, Jay-Z, for the most nominations of all time. Despite the success, Beyoncé was unable to take home the award for Album of the Year. Instead, that honor went to Harry Styles for Harry’s House. Jay-Z slammed the decision in an interview with Tidal published the next morning.
“I remove myself from the process and hope they just get it right,” he told Elliott Wilson for the piece. “It got to the point where I was like, it’s just a marketing thing. You go, you got an album out and it could help the sales go up.”
It was also a big night for Viola Davis, who achieved the rare EGOT status. She won Best Audio Book, Narration, and Storytelling Recording. The Recording Academy awarded her for her performance of the audiobook for her memoir Finding Me. Check out BBC’s controversial graphic featuring Viola Davis named Beyoncé below, as well as the outlet’s apology.
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