‘Big Brother’ kicks off contestant who used N-word on camera

The premiere of CBS’ “Big Brother� last week was a celebration of the 25th anniversary of the reality competition series, whose millions of fans continue to be captivated by watching contestants isolated inside a custom-made house for the summer compete for a lucrative prize.

But that celebration is now over.

A contestant who uttered the N-word during an off-the-cuff conversation with other houseguests is being kicked off the show.

CBS issued a statement Wednesday saying that Florida-based illustrator Luke Valentine had violated the “Big Brother� code of conduct and that there was zero tolerance in the house for using a racial slur. “He has been removed from the house,� the statement read. “His departure will be addressed in Thursday night’s show.�

After making the slur, which aired on the series’ live feed — a 24-hour, multi-camera look inside the “Big Brother� compound that supplements the edited episodes on CBS — Valentine tried to backtrack, apologizing to a Black houseguest who was in the room. Valentine then said “I don’t give a f—,� as if to deflect the trouble that might follow the code of conduct violation.

The ouster is the latest in a long line of racially charged incidents that have shadowed the series since its premiere. Most recently, Black contestant Kemi Fakunle in 2019 publicly decried “degrading and threatening comments� from fellow houseguests and accused a producer of encouraging her to use a stereotypical Black accent. (The producer was reprimanded and received unconscious bias training.)

Even the recent triumphs of Black houseguests in a format traditionally won by white contestants have caused controversy. In 2021, an all-Black alliance known as the Cookout was accused of “reverse racism� by some viewers for its campaign to ensure the series’ first Black winner.