Barbie Bassett, a long-time WLBT anchor and meteorologist, was taken off the air after using the phrase “fo shizzle my nizzle” during a broadcast. The phrase is popularly attributed to Snoop Dogg, and Bassett used it while discussing his new wine collection.
The incident sparked immediate controversy and Bassett was soon removed from her position at WLBT. Social media reports suggested that she had been fired due to her use of the phrase, which many considered racially insensitive.
Mississippi news anchor Barbie Basset fired for saying “Fo Shizzle My Nizzle” live on air when discussing Snoop Dog new wine collection. She has been a news anchor at the company for over 20 years. 👀😳
pic.twitter.com/zWBAOlvHyk— Daily Loud (@DailyLoud) March 25, 2023
The news of Bassett’s firing spread quickly across the internet, with many people expressing their outrage over what they saw as an unjustified termination. Some argued that Bassett had simply been trying to make a joke and that her use of the phrase was not intended to be offensive. Others argued that she should have known better than to use such language on air and that her actions warranted dismissal.
This incident serves as an important reminder of how quickly something said on air can spread online and potentially cause serious damage to someone’s reputation or career. News anchors and tv personalities constantly have to think very carefully before saying anything on air and consider how their words might be perceived by others.
Should this be the case? No, I don’t think so. It never used to be that way prior to about 10 years ago and guess what? We all lived much happier lives than we do now with everyone at each other’s throats. That’s what we need to get back to.
Now, it probably wasn’t the best thing for her to say on air, but we need to break from this stupid idea that people should have their lives ruined over silly mistakes like this. I’ll guarantee you that she had no idea that what that meant was about the n-word.
