CNN and Jake Tapper apologize for ‘unacceptable’ banner text
NEW YORK (AP) – CNN and host Jake Tapper have both apologized for an on-screen banner that Tapper said was “unacceptable” and “horrified” him when it appeared during his show on Monday.
The vacationing Tapper quickly responded to outraged viewer comments with several Twitter posts explaining that, despite his absence, he was “furious” and his “staff has heard from me.”
The offending phrase appeared during a discussion among Jim Sciutto, subbing for Tapper on “The Lead,” and two journalists about President-elect Donald Trump’s support from the alt-right. The segment focused on white nationalist leader Richard Spencer, whose anti-Semitic declarations Sciutto characterized as “hate-filled garbage.”
The on-screen phrase during the segment stated, “Alt-Right Founder Questions if Jews are People.”
CNN issued a statement calling that caption “poor judgment and we very much regret it and apologize.”