The Big Bird hullabaloo resulting from the first 2012 presidential debate seems to be the gift that just keeps on giving. But even when the Twitter storm began to die down, we still hadn’t heard from the giant yellow bird himself.
Thanks to Saturday Night Live, the Sesame Street star got a chance to make a statement during the “Weekend Update” segment.
Big Bird joined “Weekend Update” host Seth Meyers specifically for the purpose of addressing the controversy stemming from Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s statement about cutting funding for the Public Broadcasting Service. If PBS were to go, Big Bird would be done too.
Check out Big Bird’s SNL appearance in the video below:
While PBS and Sesame Street‘s parent organization, the Sesame Workshop, quickly made statements with regard to the issue, we had not yet heard from the Bird himself. What did Big Bird have to say about all of this?
“It’s just like it’s 7 hours past my bedtime.”
Seth Meyers: “How did you find out your name had been mentioned in the debate?”
Big Bird: “Oh, I got a million tweets.”
Seth Meyers: “So you’re on Twitter?”
Big Bird: “No. I’m a bird.”
“I know what a Twitter is. Sesame Street has wi-fi.”
“I feel like I’m famous now… It’s so weird to think that just a few days ago I could just blend in like every other perfectly normal, 8-foot tall, talking bird!”
“I don’t want to ruffle any feathers.” (when asked to make a political statement)
This whole crazy situation started when, during his debate with President Barack Obama, Mitt Romney declared that he would cut off funding to PBS if elected. Romney probably meant to soften the blow of such a statement by declaring his fondness for Big Bird in the same breath.
Instead, he touched off an Internet storm that has now lasted several days. Big Bird instantly became a top trending topic on Twitter, and new “Big Bird” accounts sprang up on both Facebook and Twitter.
It’s hard to say whether or not this whole thing will have any effect at all on the coming Presidential election. But it’s sure been big for pop culture and for the Internet.
(Images and video courtesy of NBC and the Sesame Workshop)
Senior Writer, BuddyTV
Laurel grew up in Mamaroneck, NY, Grosse Pointe, MI and Bellevue WA. She then went on to live in places like Boston, Tucson, Houston, Wales, Tanzania, Prince Edward Island and New York City before heading back to Seattle. Ever since early childhood, when she became addicted to The Muppet Show, Laurel has watched far too much TV. Current favorites include Chuck, Modern Family, Supernatural, Mad Men and Community. Laurel received a BA in Astrophysics (yes, that is possible) from Colgate University and a PhD in Middle Eastern Studies and History of Science from Columbia University before she realized that television is much better than studying.
