SiriusXM Urban View host Karen Hunter sharply criticized BAFTA following an incident at the 2026 British Academy Film Awards in which a man with Tourette syndrome shouted the n-word while Delroy Lindo and Michael B. Jordan were presenting onstage.
“We talked extensively yesterday about the BAFTA film awards and the gentleman with Tourette’s that yelled out the n-word when Delroy Lindo and Michael B. Jordan were presenting,” Hunter said on air. She noted that the man “didn’t yell the n-word at anybody else. He was yelling, but not that word to anybody else.”
Hunter says BAFTA and the BBC made deliberate editorial choices.
“BAFTA had an opportunity to edit it out,” she said. “They edited out ‘Free Palestine,’ but they didn’t edit that out. They made a conscious decision.” She added that Warner Bros. raised concerns immediately. “Even when Warner Brothers raised an immediate concern about this slur directed at the stars of Sinners, they made a conscious decision, according to published reports, to ignore Warner Brothers and leave it in.”
The incident prompted filmmaker and executive producer Jonté Richardson to withdraw from BAFTA’s emerging talent judging panel. Hunter read Richardson’s statement on air. “The organization’s handling of the unfortunate Tourette’s n-word incident last night at the awards was utterly unforgivable,” Richardson wrote. “I cannot and will not contribute my time, energy, and expertise to an organization that has repeatedly failed to safeguard the dignity of its Black guests, members, and the Black creative community.”
Richardson continued, “When an organization like BAFTA with its own long history of systemic racism refuses to acknowledge the harm inflicted on both the Black and disabled communities and offer an appropriate apology, remaining involved would be tantamount to condoning its behavior.”
Hunter praised the decision. “Yeah, this is how you do that,” she said. She connected the moment to a broader critique of media consumption. “Are we there to rubberneck or will our viewership change anything?” Hunter asked. “We have way too much building to do. We have way too many amazing things to create. We don’t have time for this.”
The Black History Month, Karen Hunter’s premium apparel line, The Global Majority, is highlighting one of her most popular drops, Freedom Isn’t Free.
