Viewers Reject Accusations That Grammys Caption ‘Singing In Non-English’ Was ‘Racist’: ‘This Offends No One’

The government was attacked by the critics Grammy Awards, complaining that the closed captioning didn’t switch seamlessly between English Spanish while Artist Bad Bunny was performing.

However, many viewers saw it as an overreaction. Especially since 78% of Americans speak English at home and 13% report speaking Spanish. census data In 2021. 

It all began when the Puerto Rican performer, who is hugely loved, took to the stage singing. “El Apagón” And “Después de la Playa.” The captions of the East Coast broadcast read, “[SPEAKING NON-ENGLISH]” And “[SINGING IN NON-ENGLISH]” during Bad Bunny’s mashup performance, leading some to accuse the program of “racist” behavior.

“As a Puerto Rican, Latina and Spanish speaker, putting “[SINGING IN NON-ENGLISH]” Bad Bunny, one of the most well-known artists in the world, sings in Spanish in a country where millions of Spanish speakers. This is IGNORANT AND INSULTING. Do better CBS,” one tweet . 

“Bad Bunny wins a Grammy, and when he speaks some Spanish during his acceptance speech the best you can do in the close [sic] captioning is to type “NON-ENGLISH” ?!?!?  Just a little racist,” another account We are in agreement. “Do better. Be prepared with a multilingual captionist.”

Every comment criticizing CBS and Grammys for not translating the captions into Spanish was met with someone saying that it was absurd to be so upset.

“Oh Jesus grow up. Stop grasping,” One tweet . “That’s what it says on literally all closed captioning. English is the main language in the USA. The fact he was on the show is amazing. I’ve lived between the USA and Mexico [sic] my entire life. This offends no one I know.”

Others pointed out how captions can be changed to any language, and expecting the English subtitles to switch to other languages wasn’t practical. 

“Go into your televisions [sic] settings, when you do that, change the language to Spanish when you set it up. Just like you do when you get a new iPhone and set the language. Then the captions will be in Spanish or whatever language you want. But I’m sure complaints are just easier,” One Twitter user Observe.

“As a Puerto Rican, you spend too much energy on issues that have no impact on your life,” Another . 

CBS quickly rebroadcast the Grammys in primetime on the West Coast after the backlash. That show included updated Spanish closed captioning for Bad Bunny’s opening performance, and the on-demand version also includes closed captioning in Spanish, per Variety.