One Moment WWE Wants You To Forget From Every Year (1985 to 2026)
26. 2001 - Stephanie McMahon's Post-9/11 Speech
Only a McMahon family member.
WWE’s September 13, 2001 edition of SmackDown - one of the first events of its kind anywhere in America following the devastation of 9/11 - had a lot of Vince McMahon's ludicrous carny moxie about it, but the Chairman uncharacteristically dialled down the jingoism in a remarkably composed opening speech about the hows, wheres and whys of running the event.
It wan't overtly confrontational or opportunistically aggressive, and managed to quite impressively capture the nation's unity in mourning.
Later on, it was Stephanie's turn. At no point during the entire Invasion storyline had she cut a heel promo with such biliousness. It was scarcely believable in the moment and, generously, tone-deaf now. To an audience still shaken by the trauma of everything that had happened, she said the darkest day in the country's history was a lot like when the U.S. government dared to prosecute her Father in 1994.
In a pre-taped spot that could have been left on the cutting room floor or at very least re-shot following a quiet word, the sense of solidarity or empathy was lost to once again trying to champion the McMahon family. That it made air without a few of those checks and balances speaks to just how disconnected from reality so many within the company were.