Monday morning, fans of the hit show “The Office” expressed outrage as President Donald Trump ordered the season one episode “Diversity Day” to be pulled from the streaming service. This move from the new administration is part of a larger attack on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiatives.
“It’s a disgrace,” Trump said in a press conference held in the Oval Office following the order. “I saw the show. ‘Watch the show,’ they told me. I wasn’t impressed. I thought Michael Scott was a loser, and I don’t like losers.”
Trump went on to share that while he disliked most of the characters portrayed in the show, he was a fan of Ryan Howard, portrayed by B.J. Novak. “That kid would have made a very successful businessman. I think he’s great,” Trump said.
After initially ensuring fans would stand firm against the order, Peacock quietly removed the episode from its season one line-up late last night.
“The Office” holds a significant place in the hearts of CSUN students, as the show filmed multiple episodes on the campus.
“I think that, like, as a president, if you’re really stuck on, like, season one of “The Office” rather than what’s going on, like, you kind of lost your marbles,” America Dominguez said in response to the breaking news.
When asked by reporters why the president was targeting the NBC sitcom, Trump responded that he believed all Americans should not see race, as he does not, and the episode promoted DEI initiatives. The attack on the television program was made to “restore fairness and accountability” within broadcast and streaming networks.
“We will terminate the woke ideology, and this is one of millions of steps I have taken – I have taken lots of steps – as the 46th president, not the 47th, because no one counts Sleepy Joe.” Trump said. “We are creating a media like no one has ever seen before. We will make television great again.”
When asked whether or not a president should hold such power, CSUN student Kunwar Magoo disagreed.
“I mean, it’s a sitcom so… Michael is always doing that kind of stuff, so you would have to remove the whole series,” Magoo said.
Marisol Castaneda, a friend of Dominguez, called this new move by the president “history erasure.”
According to Yeomin Kim, she has witnessed a change in what is “normal” within U.S. culture regarding race and how it is discussed, specifically in the past 10 years.
“It seems like Trump is trying to change what counts as normal and has been built as, like, normal regarding race,” Kim said.
While Peacock has not yet responded to requests for comment, the White House has already begun selling “Make Peacock Great Again” hats on their website, featuring NBC’s brightly colored logo.
Fans now fear other favorite hits may be at risk in the future, as this new concession made by Peacock paves the way for a new precedent on the Trump administration’s influence.
“If you try to delete one, what makes us think that you’re not going to delete all the other ones,” Dominguez said. “Freedom of speech, like freedom of cartoon, of animation, of creative juices.
Click on this link for more information on this breaking news story.*
*April Fools! This article is a joke in honor of All Fools’ Day.
