Fox News Anchor Kristi Capel Gives Insincere Apology To ‘Jigaboo’ Slur
New anchor Kristi Capel is in hot water for dropping a racial slur during a news broadcast. In a post-Oscars broadcast of Cleveland’s Fox News 8 in The Morning, Kristi Capel and her colleague, Wayne Johnson, were discussing Lady Gaga’s tribute to The Sound of Music at the awards show. Capel, who was trying to pay a compliment to the singer, said that she couldn’t appreciate Lady Gaga when she’s singing her own songs.
“It’s hard to really hear her voice with all the jigaboo music,” Capel said to a stunned Wayne Dawson, who happens to be African-American.
For those unaware, “jigaboo” is a racial slur used for African-Americans back in the 1900s. After the broadcast, people took to Twitter to call out Capel on her mistake. She replied with a stock answer to all of her critics.
“I apologize if I offended you, I had no idea it was a word or what it meant. Thank you for watching.”
The seemingly copy-pasted answer irked people as much as her use of the racist term.
Your apology isn’t genuine! Your copying and pasting this to everyone I WANT ANSWERS! Why do you still have a job? @Kristi_Capel
— Assata Shakur (@LocsWithoutKeys) February 23, 2015
If a black anchor said “cracker” with the same ease and calm laugh w/ which @Kristi_Capel said “jigaboo” today, they’d be unemployed by now.
— deray mckesson (@deray) February 24, 2015
Let EYE get this straight. @Kristi_Capel‘s comment was racist as hell and I will tell you why. She was referencing the choir backing GaGa.
— Steph B-More™ (@StephBMore) February 23, 2015
“I had no idea it was a word or what it meant” No prob @Kristi_Capel, knowing wtf ur saying isn’t a prereq for reporting @FoxNews #Jigaboo
— David Lyman (@david_lyman) February 23, 2015
#Jigaboo @Kristi_Capel likely won’t be fired by @FoxNews. Anyone offended by what she says is not part of their target demographic. — ?Mika Tan™? (@Mika_Tan) February 23, 2015
Channel 8’s news director, Andy Fishman, talked to the New York Daily News to do damage control. According to Fishman, “She didn’t even know what the word meant, which is not an excuse. We’ve spoken to her about this, and we’re confident it won’t happen again. From here, we’ll handle it internally.”
(Then why would she say it? RT @HoobaRell: @Kristi_Capel she clearly had no idea what jiggaboo means — Talib Kweli Greene (@TalibKweli) February 23, 2015
Seriously: Leave @Kristi_Capel the hell alone. She obviously had no idea what the word meant–as a slur or otherwise. ZERO intent to offend.
— Bob Frantz (@FrantzRadio) February 24, 2015
Capel has since deleted her replies to her detractors, replacing it instead with another apology.
“I deeply regret my insensitive comment. I truly did not know the meaning of the word, and would never intentionally use such hurtful language. I sincerely apologize.”
I deeply regret my insensitive comment. I didn’t know the meaning and would never intentionally use hurtful language. I sincerely apologize
— Kristi Capel (@Kristi_Capel) February 23, 2015
Just use the N word next time, so you’re clear on the meaning. RT @Kristi_Capel I deeply regret my insensitive comment…. [jiggaboo music]
— Mr. fucking nice guy (@marchaxcpp) February 23, 2015
According to Fishman, Capel will not be pulled off the air.
“She does feel horrible about this. It’s not who she is,” Fishman said
The anger sparked by Capel’s comments is another nail on the coffin for a racially-charged Academy Awards. People have been complaining about a lack of diversity in the awards show following the Selma snub, with host Neil Patrick Harris joking, “Tonight we honor Hollywood’s best and whitest… sorry, brightest.”
And later on in the night, Sean Penn made a seemingly racist joke as he presented Birdman with the Best Picture award. As he prepared to announce Mexican director Alejandro Gonzales Iñárritu’s name, Penn joked, “Who gave this son of a bitch his green card?”
Fans immediately cried foul on social media over Penn’s remarks.
[Image via YouTube]
