'SNL' Cold Open: Facebook Whistleblower Hearing Parody Kicks off Kim Kardashian's Episode

Before Kim Kardashian made her debut, Saturday Night Live's cold open featured parody of recent Senate hearings about Facebook and Instagram. Whistleblower Frances Haugen accused Facebook of knowingly ignoring how its platforms' algorithms damage users' mental health and elevate misinformation. Several SNL cast members imitated politicians and pelted Haugen (played by Heidi Gardner) with idiotic questions about Facebook that were unrelated to the scandal.

The ensemble included Ted Cruz (Aidy Bryant), Lindsey Graham (James Austin Johnson), Corey Booker (Chris Redd) and Diane Feinstein (Cecily Strong). The panel asked about random memes, people making mean comments about them and other unrelated tangents. The sketch closed with a random bit of testimony from MySpace founder Tom Anderson, played by Pete Davidson recreating the entrepreneur's iconic profile photo.

This week's episode of SNL has faced a lot of pushback due to the presence of Kim Kardashian as the host. Many viewers object to the reality star taking on the hosting gig, with many taking to social media to say that they will be skipping the episode. While fans were excited by the prospect of Halsey's performance, many believe that Kardashian isn't the right choice. 

"I have less than no interest in anything KK's involved with," wrote one fan. "Thanks for the reminder but I'll be busy washing my hair," wrote one person on Twitter. "I won't be watching SNL tonight. Kim Kardashian doesn't deserve a second of my time," one fan said succinctly.

For her part, Kardashian is used to the criticism and is taking the controversy in stride. In the promo for the episode, the Keeping Up with the Kardashians star is asked by Cecily Strong if she's nervous about taking over the 30 Rock stage. "Why? I don't have to write sketches, do I?" Kardashian responded. "Memorize lines?" Musical guest Halsey reminded her, "No, there are cue cards." Kardashian then asked, "Everyone else won't look as good as me, will they?" to which Strong assured her, "No, absolutely not." Kardashian joked in conclusion, "This is so easy."