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After hosting the talent show for eight seasons, Nick Cannon is quitting "America's Got Talent."
The mogul revealed this shocking news this morning (Feb. 13) on his social media accounts. Apparently, some NBC executives didn't like a racial joke that Cannon said during one of his stand-up comedy special on ShowTime that aired on Feb. 10. The joke was in regards to the network and the higher ups believed the comedian was speaking badly about the company.
"After days of deliberating over some extremely disappointing news that I was being threatened with termination by Executives because of a comedy special that was only intended to bring communities closer together, I was to be punished for a joke," Cannon wrote on Facebook. "This has weighed heavy on my spirit. It was brought to my attention by my 'team' that NBC believed that I was in breach of contract because I had disparaged their brand. In my defense, I would ask how so?"
He continued: "Or is this just another way to silence and control an outspoken voice who often battles the establishment. Recently many of my mentors have cautioned me that soon 'The System' would come down on me because I was speaking too many truths and being to loud about it."
That's when Cannon affirmed that he will not be shut up by any entity, NBC included. "I will not be silenced, controlled or treated like a piece of property. There is no amount of money worth my dignity or my integrity."
He added: "Not to get too detailed but this isn't the first time executives have attempted to 'put me in my place' for so called unruly actions. I will not stand for it...Now for the rug to be pulled from underneath me and to be publicly reprimanded and ridiculed over a joke about my own race is completely wrong."
Read Nick Cannon's entire message below. We're sure going to miss this guys on the show.
Yesterday (Feb. 13), Nick Cannon announced that he wasn't returning as a host on "America's Got Talent" after NBC attempted to "silence" him when he said a racial joke on his stand-up comedy show. Now, the network is clapping back.
"After days of deliberating over some extremely disappointing news that I was being threatened with termination by Executives because of a comedy special that was only intended to bring communities closer together, I was to be punished for a joke," Cannon wrote on Facebook. "I will not be silenced, controlled or treated like a piece of property. There is no amount of money worth my dignity or my integrity."
He added: "Not to get too detailed but this isn't the first time executives have attempted to 'put me in my place' for so called unruly actions. I will not stand for it...Now for the rug to be pulled from underneath me and to be publicly reprimanded and ridiculed over a joke about my own race is completely wrong."
According to Page Six, execs at NBC were shocked when they caught wind of this message. They said that NBC never threatened to terminate Cannon. The network also said that if the star doesn't want any legal issues with them, he has to return to the show per his contract.
"But network insiders denied to Page Six that NBC threatened to fire Cannon, and added that since he has a contract, he would likely run into legal problems if he tried to follow through with his Facebook threat," Page Six reports. "Sources also said that network bigs have been trying to contact Cannon, to no avail."
Let's see how this story continues to unfold.
Photo: Getty Images