A local news station in Chicago has apologized for running a graphic that was meant for a “satirical” news piece during its real coverage of the 2018 Winter Olympics, the Chicago Tribune reported Monday.
On Saturday, local ABC news station WLS-TV ran a graphic that read “P.F. Chang 2018” alongside an erroneous Olympics logo while covering the political climate surrounding the games in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
Video posted to Mediaite shows that the graphic appeared on air for a few seconds before producers cut away to discuss tensions between South Korea and North Korea.
The Chicago Tribune reported that WLS-TV spokesperson Jayme Nicholas said the graphic was created for a satirical piece that aired on Friday, but it was used by mistake on Saturday morning.
Journalists and viewers ridiculed the screw-up on Twitter.
Even if the graphic was meant to be satirical, referring to P.F. Chang’s, an Asian-themed U.S. restaurant chain, instead of Pyeongchang, a mountainous county in South Korea, is in terrible taste at best, and racist at worst. Just last week, students from St. Xavier High School in Ohio were subjected to racist chants from fans of the opposing team. Video shows teens in Elder High School’s section chanting “P.F. Chang’s” at Nate Stockman, a multiracial Asian-American player.
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