NEW YORK, June 17 (UPI) -- After a misguided attempt to congratulate USA's victory over World Cup rival Ghana on Monday night, Delta Airlines drew criticism for its inaccurate portrayal of the West African nation.
Delta's Twitter graphic celebrating the win featured images of the Statue of Liberty, representing the United States, and a giraffe, representing Ghana. But as many Twitter users pointed out, there are no giraffes in Ghana.
.@Delta's tweet celebrating Team USA's World Cup victory over Ghana has been called "racist." http://t.co/mNCW1ybj1B pic.twitter.com/OgH9TFgd4p
Advertisement— Mashable (@mashable) June 17, 2014No giraffe in Ghana - maybe you should have asked the experts in giraffe conservation! http://t.co/sXaKh3KiGI
— GCF (@Save_Giraffe) June 17, 2014Delta redacted the erroneous tweet:
"We're sorry for our choice of photo in our previous tweet. Best of luck to all teams," the company added.
It also issued a lengthier statement on its website Tuesday, calling the Twitter photo "inappropriate."
As a global airline, we understand the role images play in shaping global perceptions. We also recognize our responsibility to create messages that are both accurate and inclusive. We take this responsibility seriously. Yesterday, we failed to meet this responsibility. For this, we sincerely apologize.
