Arsenio Hall gets an apology from Brian Williams - Los Angeles Times
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Arsenio Hall gets an apology from Brian Williams

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Arsenio Hall has gotten an apology from NBC News’ Brian Williams, and all it took was a threat from Suge Knight! And some outspoken fans.

On Tuesday night’s episode of “The Arsenio Hall Show,” Hall complained that Williams had left him out of an “NBC Nightly News” graphic on the various late night hosts. The graphic listed nine hosts, leaving out Hall and TBS’ Pete Holmes.

Hall said he didn’t want to be the “angry black man” over the slight, so he brought out a friend who had no trouble filling that role: music mogul and ex-convict Suge Knight. Knight’s suggestion that Williams make it right left even Hall a little uncomfortable, prompting the host to add, “We might just be kidding, Brian!”

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Hall later explained, “That was a crazy moment. ... That was one of those moments where you know the joke [Knight] is supposed to tell and Suge got real on that. That wasn’t what we told Suge to say.”

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Hall had also broadcast the phone number for the “Nightly News” newsroom and urged fans to give Williams a piece of their mind. At least some apparently did just that.

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By Wednesday evening, Williams had issued an apology to Hall on the air. The anchor also pointed out several other mistakes the “Nightly News” had made recently, including leaving the entire state of New Hampshire off a map.

“Chalk it up to being on the air at 4 a.m. in the morning in Russia,” Williams said on the newscast. “But it won’t happen again.”

Hall called the apology “cool.” Lucky for Williams, Suge Knight doesn’t live in New Hampshire. Otherwise, he’d have a little more explaining to do.

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