Florida Governor's Office Amended The List Of Essential Businesses Which Ensured WWE Could Go Ahead With Tapings

Over the weekend, reports indicated that WWE will broadcast episodes of Friday Night SmackDown and Monday Night Raw live despite there being 20,601 coronavirus cases in Florida. Shortly after the decision, WWE claimed they were a brand "that has been woven into the fabric of society" and that it was important to provide families with a distraction during the pandemic. 

Many wondered how the company was even able to tape programming during the pandemic, but Mayor of Orange County, Florida Jerry Demings explained the county initially deemed WWE to be a non-essential business, but after speaking to the Florida Governor's office, they changed their mind. 

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis even took measures which ensured WWE would be able to tape their programming live, as the Florida Division of Emergency Management released a memo on April 9 which added "professional sports and media production" to the list of essential services in the state. 

When asked about his decision by ESPN, a spokesman for DeSantis said WWE was characterised as essential "because they are critical to Florida's economy."