MSNBC apologizes for cringe-worthy Cinco de Mayo segment

MSNBC/Huffington Post

MSNBC apologizes for cringe-worthy Cinco de Mayo segment
(Image credit: MSNBC/Huffington Post)

Way Too Early host Thomas Roberts made the poor decision yesterday of airing a special Cinco de Mayo segment in which a sombrero-clad producer pretended to get drunk off tequila while shaking a maraca. Hugo Balta, the president of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists, called it the "the worst example I have seen of discriminatory stereotypical portrayal of any community by any media," prompting an apology from MSNBC.

"It was not our intention to be disrespectful and we sincerely apologize for the ill-advised references," the network said in a statement. The show's producer told Balta that all employees involved in the segment will be disciplined and ensured him that an incident like this will never happen again.

The Huffington Post has video of the cringe-worthy segment.

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Jordan Valinsky is the lead writer for Speed Reads. Before joining The Week, he wrote for New York Observer's tech blog, Betabeat, and tracked the intersection between popular culture and the internet for The Daily Dot. He graduated with a degree in online journalism from Ohio University.