As Americans across the country prepare to take part in socially distanced and, in some cases, virtual Thanksgiving celebrations, many who tuned into Thursday’s 94th Annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade were angered to see both the hosts and performers without face masks. The wearing of face masks has widely been encouraged by health experts, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as a means to help slow the spread of the coronavirus. As the country heads into the holidays, cases are already spiking.
Despite this, many of those who appeared on TV screens Thursday morning opted to forgo the recommended accessory, despite the numerous other precautions the annual event is taking amid the pandemic. Today co-hosts Hoda Kotb and Savannah Guthrie were not donning the recommended mask. Meteorologist Al Roker, who was seen interacting with the crowd and even had a reunion with 2019’s Butter Man, also was seen without a mask. Jimmy Fallon, too, forwent the personal protective equipment during his performance to kick off the day.
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The lack of mask wearing immediately upset some viewers. As some took to social media to comment on other aspects of the morning’s events, Twitter quickly flooded with people voicing their concerns and outrage, many calling out the celebrity hosts and the performers for not following the advice of health experts. Keep scrolling to see what they are saying.
Are f kidding me JF singing with no mask!!!! Unbelievable your station is hypocrites far left democratic new station! Do as I saw not as I do!
— It is what it is (@termlimit2020) November 26, 2020
@NBCNews @MSNBC @alroker @Macys WTF? Why is Al Roker walking around people without his mask at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade? Be better than this!
— JP Dietz (Jody) – 86-45-11-3-20 (@ChefJohanD) November 26, 2020
Turned on the @Macys #ThanksgivingDayParade and nobody is wearing masks. Put on your fucking mask, @jimmyfallon and @hodakotb and whoever that other lady is
— Ranky #BLM #ACAB Danky (@RoyoftheFire) November 26, 2020
Who else is ready for the Macy’s super spreader parade?
— caroline “wear the damn mask” sylvia (@sweetCAROLINE_S) November 26, 2020
Jimmy Fallon, put a mask on if you want to scream and sing
— Devin Burr (@dtb1397) November 26, 2020
Wow. Jimmy Fallon SINGING on TV without wearing a mask. Very dangerous. Can’t wait for @jaketapper to set him straight! #MacysParade
— Jake (@UCCowboy) November 26, 2020
@SavannahGuthrie Please wear your mask and Hoda too
— TheArtWorks™ (@art_wilmington) November 26, 2020
So, should Hoda and Savannah be wearing masks? At first I thought maybe it was because there was a mask/microphone issue. But. . . .Al Roker seems to be doing just fine. Hmmm. . . .
— Fred Ende (@FredEnde) November 26, 2020
Watching #MacysParade – where are the masks? @NBC folks not masked, cops not masked, turkey not masked, bands don’t have masks around their necks to use when not playing. #Disappointing #PandemicParade
— Sue Kerr 😷 (@PghLesbian24) November 26, 2020
What am I missing here? Performers close to each other without masks. Why? How? #MacysParade
— Meryl #FreeThemAll (@merylnyc) November 26, 2020
I hate to be that person, but you know there are going to be people out there that watch the #MacysThanksgivingParade and see @HamiltonMusical not wearing masks and figure if they don’t need to follow the guidelines, why do I? Bad call. #MacysParade
— Kyle (@kyzman) November 26, 2020
I find it funny the #MacysParade talked about how much safety they are taking with the #VerizonLive thing and then they open with 4 officers not wearing masks leading the way. pic.twitter.com/tCn9jBrnNF
— LtVictory – Mint Braxton – Varun Torino WWRP (@LtVic) November 26, 2020
Why aren’t Samantha, Hoda, and Jimmy wearing masks? #MacysParade
— Meredith Crawford Collins (@meredithccollin) November 26, 2020
So, Jimmy and the girls can’t get #COVID (no masks) but the dancers can? This makes no sense. Plus, watching their breaths in the cold through the masks you can see how ineffective they are!! #MacysParade #MacysThanksgivingParade
— K. Swan Taylor (@KellisLST) November 26, 2020