How come M.I.A. is AWOL?

News reports have told about NBC and NFL apologizing for performer/lip-syncher M.I.A. flipping the bird during the Super Bowl halftime.

The TV network and the pro football league also are blaming each other. The NFL says NBC failed to censor the image, and NBC says the NFL is responsible for the halftime content.

Why is that of the umpteen trillion news reports available on the bird-flipping incident, very, very few have questioned the person who truly is responsible for the obscenity? They either say M.I.A. has not made a statement or say nothing at further about her beyond the offensive gesture.

Call her on the carpet. Make her boil until she makes a public statement. The news media ought to use its power to get the performer to stop hiding and be responsible for her actions. Instead, they give her a free ticket and scrutinize NBC and the NFL. Huh?

Fortunately, one of the few reports that scrutinize her in the situation says she likely has a clause where the NFL can indemnify her for any costs it suffers for violating the obscenity rule.

Good. She deserves to suffer a loss of pay for the childish behavior. After all, a record TV audience was watching. That audience includes grandparents, children and other family members. Obscenities can make watching a wholesome football game awkward.

But we all know why she hasn’t apologized. She made the gesture in the first place because she has an album coming out, and this negative publicity and actually good publicity for her. Honestly, who knew about M.I.A. before Sunday?

See. Despite any fines, she will come out on top anyway.

It’s enough to make you change the channel.