McCartney Set for Super Bowl Halftime Show
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Paul McCartney will be the featured performer in the next Super Bowl halftime show and organizers promised there won’t be any breast baring this time.
Last February’s broadcast on CBS in which Janet Jackson’s breast was bared during a duet with pop star Justin Timberlake spurred hundreds of thousands of complaints to federal regulators. Jackson blamed the incident on a “wardrobe malfunction.”
National Football League spokesman Brian McCarthy told Reuters on Sunday there won’t be any such malfunctions during the 12-minute performance, which will air on the Fox network.
He said the Feb. 6 show will have wide audience appeal and bridge several generations of fans.
“We’re very cognizant we’ll be under spotlight with this year’s halftime show and we’ve looked at all facets of the show including talent selection, song selection and costume selection, to ensure we wouldn’t have a repeat of what happened last year,” McCarthy said.
“We’re very comfortable that this year’s show will be acceptable to a mass audience and won’t have any issues.”
CBS was fined $550,000 by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission after the last show but Viacom Inc. co-President and CBS Chief Executive Leslie Moonves planned to fight the fine.
This will be McCartney’s second Super Bowl appearance. He provided a memorable pregame Super Bowl performance in 2002, the first Super Bowl after the Sept. 11 attacks.
“There’s nothing bigger then being asked to perform at the Super Bowl,” former Beatle McCartney said in a statement. “We’re looking forward to rocking the millions at home and in the stadium.”
Watched by more than 144 million viewers in the United States last year, the Super Bowl is the nation’s highest-rated TV program and the most-watched single-day sporting event. The game will be broadcast in more than 200 countries worldwide.
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