Steve Harvey
Host Steve Harvey speaks to the audience after Miss Colombia, Ariadna Gutierrez was crowned Miss Universe during the pageant in Las Vegas, Nevada on 20 December 2015 REUTERS/Steve Marcus

It's the mistake discussed around the world. First-time Miss Universe host Steve Harvey makes a huge blunder, crowning the wrong winner, before acknowledging his mistake and crowning the actual winner. After facing intense criticisms, jokes and even memes, a question remains. Can Harvey's career survive his major gaffe?

According to Fox News, some are referencing a backstage Snapchat video as proof that Harvey may not have been at fault for the mistake. The seven-second snap shows Harvey following the crowning of Miss Colombia over Miss Philippines as he points to a cue card and tells an unidentified person, "The teleprompter said Miss Universe—Colombia." While the video was originally posted on the Miss Universe Snapchat channel, it is no longer available.

Harvey and the Miss Universe organisation, however, have called the mistake "human error," with the comedian and TV host taking the blame. "I'd like to apologise wholeheartedly to Miss Colombia & Miss Philippines for my huge mistake. I feel terrible," he tweeted. The pageant organisation later issued a statement that did not place the blame on any particular individual.

Celebrity blogger Perez Hilton, who initially slammed Harvey for his mistake and admitted to thinking the pageant was "rigged" at first, has told Us Magazine he thinks Harvey deserves a second chance. "They need to bring Steve Harvey back again next year," Hilton said.

The blogger is not the only one who wants the comedian back. According to The Washington Post, WME/IMG Chief Content Officer Mark Shapiro (the company that now owns the pageant) said: "I definitely want him back, and I would hate to see him not come back. He's going to want a shot to redeem himself."

Whether it was a publicity ploy by the Miss Universe organisation, a cue card mistake, or just an honest mistake by Harvey, it seems that Harvey's career will survive the mistake. Harvey can definitely expect to continue being a laughingstock for a while, but given his career is based on making people laugh, it will hardly hurt him.

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