Presenter and comedian Jay Leno apologized for a series of jokes told about his career targeting Asian communities.
The apology comes after a nearly 15-year campaign by the activist group Media Action Network for Asian Americans (MANAA) for comments as recent as VarietyThe 2020 report that Leno complained about Koreans eating dog meat – a complaint that offended several players on the set of NBC’s “America’s Got Talent”.
“At the time I made these jokes, I really thought they were harmless,” said Leno in a recent Zoom call with MANAA leader Guy Aoki. “I was mocking our enemy in North Korea and, like most jokes, there was a real tone to them.
Leno continued: “At the time, the attitude that some group is always complaining about something prevailed, so don’t worry about it. Whenever we received a complaint, there would be two sides to the discussion: ‘We need to deal with this’ or ‘Screw it if they don’t take a joke’. Many times I sided with the latter, even when in my heart I knew it was wrong. “
In light of this, Leno said: “I am issuing this apology. I do not see this particular case as another example of a culture of cancellation, but a legitimate mistake that was made on my part. MANAA was very kind to accept my apologies. I hope that the Asian-American community will also be able to accept this and I hope to be able to live up to your expectations in the future. “
Entertainment and media are increasingly expressive and horrified by the wave of anti-Asian violence in the United States, which many attribute to the rhetoric of the Trump era and blame China for the spread of the coronavirus. Last week, a lone sniper killed eight people in three spas in Atlanta. Six of the eight victims were Asian women, which inspired demonstrations across the country against hate crimes and support for the AAPI community.
Most of Leno’s old jokes perpetuated stereotypes about Asian communities that ate dog meat. Much talked about his routines, Aoki of MANAA said he appealed to Leno’s new employers at Fox, where he hosts the game show “You Bet Your Life”, initially offering them an ultimatum to fire the presenter or MANAA would approach sponsors to boycott the project.
After appealing to Fox Television Stations CEO Jack Abernethy and producers Tom Werner and David Hurwitz, Aoki connected with Leno. A spokesman for Leno confirmed his apology, but made no further comments.