Andy Ogles demands House investigation into Bad Bunny's 'explicit and indecent' Super Bowl performance

Rep Andy Ogles has called for the House Energy and Commerce Committee to investigate the National Football League and NBCUniversal for any role executives may have had in Bad Bunny’s performance during the Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show on Sunday. 

Ogles wrote in the letter to committe chair Brett Guthrie: "I write to request that you open a formal congressional inquiry, consistent with the Committee’s jurisdiction over broadcast regulation and FCC oversight, into the National Football League (NFL) and NBCUniversal regarding their prior knowledge, review, and approval of explicit and indecent content broadcast during the Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show on February 8, 2026."

Ogles said that the performance "was aired live during prime-time hours on over-the-air television and viewed by tens of millions of Americans, including a substantial number of children and families. The Super Bowl is consistently the largest family viewing event in American media. As such, broadcasters bear a heightened responsibility to ensure that programming aired during this uniquely national event complies with longstanding broadcast decency expectations and serves the public interest."

He noted the performance of the song "Safaera" during the show, "a track widely known for explicit sexual references to anal sex, sexual intercourse, and other explicit themes," as well as the song "'Yo Perreo Sola,’ a twerking and perreo-themed song accompanied by choreography featuring overtly sexualized movements including widespread twerking, grinding, pelvis thrusts, and other sexually suggestive content."

"While the set was performed predominantly in Spanish, it relied on songs whose sexual content remained readily apparent across any language barrier. This language barrier did not mitigate the explicit nature of the material; rather, it heightened the broadcaster’s obligation to exercise reasonable diligence in reviewing, translating, and evaluating the content prior to airing."

Ogles said he was also concerned that "there may be less clarity in the application of existing rules to non-English language content, particularly where enforcement relies on public complaints and broadcaster-provided translations. We must ensure that we hold Spanish language content to the same standards and expectations we have for English language content."

He said that it was "highly implausible" that the NFL and NBCUniversal lacked an advanced knowledge of Bad Bunny’s performance’s content, noting rehearsals that were done as well as setlists and production elements that were submitted in advance. 

"Broadcasting a performance dominated by sexually explicit lyrical themes and suggestive choreography during the most widely viewed family broadcast of the year calls into question whether NBCUniversal fulfilled its responsibilities under these longstanding standards." He said that while the FCC’s direct licensing authorities apply to local broadcasting stations instead of national networks, "Congress retains a clear responsibility to ensure that statutory framework governing the public airwaves is effective and adequately enforced."

Ogles is demanding that the committee examine what knowledge the NFL and NBCUniversal had "regarding the explicit nature of the selected songs, including ’Safaera,’ and accompanying choreography prior to broadcast;" "the internal review, translation, and approval process used in preparing the halftime show for live broadcast;" whether existing safeguards such as a broadcast delay were "properly applied or intentionally disregarded;" and "the broader implications for broadcaster accountability when explicit content is aired during programming that reaches a national audience of families and minors."