[US, Mexico & Canada customers only] Feb 6, 2026; Milan, ITALY; U.S. Vice President JD Vance and Second lady Usha Vance wave American flags during the opening ceremony during the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games. Credit: Yara Nardi/Reuters via Imagn Images
By Sam Neumann on

NBC is denying it edited crowd audio when Vice President JD Vance appeared during Friday’s Winter Olympics opening ceremony in Italy, refuting reports that suggested the network altered what viewers heard.

The controversy began after Canadian viewers watching on CBC reported hearing boos when Vance was introduced, while American viewers on NBC heard no such reaction. The Guardian reported on the discrepancy, prompting questions about whether NBC had intentionally altered the audio.

Vance represented the United States at the ceremony in Milan, appearing on the broadcast, which multiple international feeds captured as a clearly negative reception from the crowd.

“There are some jeers, it seems, there in Milan,” one CBC commentator said as Vance appeared on screen.

The discrepancy quickly became a flashpoint online. The Guardian’s Robert Mackey posted on X that “Canadian viewers following the Olympics opening ceremony on CBC could hear and were told about the boos for JD Vance, while American viewers following along on NBC heard no mention of crowd response.”

His post, along with video clips comparing the two broadcasts, went viral.

“We did not edit any crowd audio for our presentation of the Opening Ceremony,” an NBC Sports spokesperson told Awful Announcing on Saturday. “The primetime replay and the world feed replay of the Opening Ceremony are both currently available to watch on Peacock.”

The network is directing viewers to Peacock, where both the live broadcast and the primetime replay are available, inviting them to compare and draw their own conclusions.

NBC’s live broadcast (first video below) and its primetime replay (second video below) do feature different audio mixes during Vance’s appearance. The tape-delayed primetime version overlays loud music not heard during NBC’s live broadcast on Friday afternoon. And while the primetime ceremony is always edited in some fashion compared to the live broadcast, typically for brevity, the timing of the inserted audio is notable given the discrepancy between NBC’s broadcast and the CBC’s.

Olympic broadcasts routinely undergo post-production for primetime viewing, including adjustments to pacing, commentary, and audio levels. But the network’s official statement maintains that no crowd audio was specifically altered.

About Sam Neumann

Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.

View all posts by Sam Neumann