MSNBC Chief Phil Griffin Apologizes for ‘Outrageous’ Tweet; Dismisses Responsible Person
Following the Republican National Committee’s announcement of a boycott of MSNBC in response to a tweet that suggested “the rightwing” would “hate” a commercial featuring a bi-racial couple, the network’s president Phil Griffin issued an apology.
The Cycle host Ari Melber read the statement on-air this afternoon:
“The tweet last night was outrageous and unacceptable. We immediately acknowledged it was offensive and wrong, apologized and deleted it. We have dismissed the person responsible for the tweet. I personally apologize to Mr. Priebus and to everyone offended. At MSNBC, we believe in passionate, strong debate about the issues, and we invite voices from all sides to participate. That will never change. Signed, Phil Griffin.”
The original tweet read:
Several hours later, after public outcry, the network posted an apology tweet and then a deletion:
Earlier, this account tweeted an offensive line about the new Cheerios ad. We deeply regret it. It does not reflect the position of msnbc.
— msnbc (@msnbc) January 30, 2014
We are deleting the earlier offensive tweet. It does not reflect msnbc's position and we apologize.
— msnbc (@msnbc) January 30, 2014
Watch the apology below:
UPDATE: Tonight, Fox’s Sean Hannity will have the first interview with RNC Chair Reince Priebus following the Twitter controversy at 10pm