US First Lady Michelle Obama (Photo : Reuters)
Univision fired its longtime Emmy-winning talk show host, Rodner Figueroa, for passing a racist comment on United States' First Lady Michelle Obama. Figueroa said on air that Michelle Obama looked like she was part of "the cast of 'Planet of the Apes.'"
The comment was made on a Wednesday broadcast fn the show "El Gordo Y La Flaca." Figueroa was talking about the trending video in which a man, Paolo Ballesteros, transforms himself into different celebrities, including Michelle Obama and Kim Kardashian, using make-up techniques. "Well, watch out, you know that Michelle Obama looks like she's from the cast of Planet of the Apes, the movie."
The show was aired live on the East Coast, but for the West Coast, Figueroa's remark was edited out, Daily Mail reported. Figueroa was again seen in a evening gossip show but by Wednesday night, the termination of the TV host became evident as his picture was removed from the network's website.
Later, Univision released an official statement condemning Fiegueroa's comment as racist and 'completely reprehensible.'
"Yesterday during the entertainment show El Gordo y La Flaca, Rodner Figueroa made comments about First Lady Michelle Obama that were completely reprehensible and in no way reflect the values or opinions of Univision. As a result, Mr. Figueroa was fired immediately," representative of Univision declared in the statement.
Meanwhile, Latin Times reported that Fiegueroa has issued an open letter apology to Michelle Obama, in which he claimed that he is not a racist and his comments have blown out of context. The former TV host mentioned that he has never offended anyone on the basis of colour, sexual orientation and nationality.
