Just Low Class, Website ‘The Onion’ Apologizes for Vulgar Tweet Sent to 9 Year Old Actress
After receiving heavy backlash for posting a vulgar tweet about 9-year-old Quvenzhané Wallis during the Oscars, satirical publication The Onion quickly deleted the tweet Sunday night and then apologized Monday on Facebook.
The tweet from @TheOnion read, “Everyone else seems afraid to say it, but that Quvenzhané Wallis is kind of a c*nt, right?” It came after the 85th Academy Awards host Seth MacFarlane made a joke about actor George Clooney and Wallis.
“So let me just address those of you up for an award, so you got nominated for an Oscar, something a 9-year-old could do,” MacFarlane said. “She’s adorable, Quvenzhané. … To give you an idea how young she is, it’ll be 16 years before she’s too old for Clooney.”
Wallis, who wore an Armani dress with a puppy purse on the red carpet, was nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role for Beasts of the Southern Wild.
The Onion‘s CEO Steve Hannah expressed the publication’s regret in a Facebook post:
Dear Readers,
On behalf of The Onion, I offer my personal apology to Quvenzhané Wallis and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for the tweet that was circulated last night during the Oscars. It was crude and offensive—not to mention inconsistent with The Onion’s commitment to parody and satire, however biting.
No person should be subjected to such a senseless, humorless comment masquerading as satire.
The tweet was taken down within an hour of publication. We have instituted new and tighter Twitter procedures to ensure that this kind of mistake does not occur again.
In addition, we are taking immediate steps to discipline those individuals responsible.
Miss Wallis, you are young and talented and deserve better. All of us at The Onion are deeply sorry.
