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The Onion apologizes for offensive Quvenzhane Wallis tweet

Satirical news organization The Onion issued a rare apology after a member of the staff tweeted an offensive remark about 9-year-old actress Quvenzhane Wallis.
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Quvenzhane Wallis arrives on the red carpet at the 85th Academy Awards at the Hollywood and Highlands Center in the Hollywood section of Los Angeles on February 24, 2013. UPI/Kevin Dietsch
Quvenzhane Wallis arrives on the red carpet at the 85th Academy Awards at the Hollywood and Highlands Center in the Hollywood section of Los Angeles on February 24, 2013. UPI/Kevin Dietsch 
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Published: Feb. 25, 2013 at 12:22 PM
Updated Feb. 26, 2013 at 10:00 AM
By GABRIELLE LEVY, UPI.com

It appears we finally know where the line of too offensive is for The Onion.

For the most part, no one is safe from the brutal mockery of "America's Finest News Source."

But after a tweet about 9-year-old best actress nominee Quvenzhane Wallis horrified the Onion's followers, the satire organization apologized in a rare moment of sincerity.

CEO Steve Hannah wrote on the Onion's Facebook page Monday morning:

Feb. 25, 2013

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.

Sincerely,

Steve Hannah
CEO
The Onion

For what it's worth, no one seemed too offended (or surprised) when host Seth MacFarlane joked that "In 16 years Quvenzhané Wallis will be too young to date George Clooney."

Here's the Onion's offending tweet, calling Quvenzhane "kind of a c***."

The Onion "deleted the tweet after people responded with outrage (but naturally, screenshots had been captured by multiple people).




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