Hosts suspended for racist gestures vs SoKor soccer team
MOSCOW — The two television hosts of Telemundo’s morning show “Un Nuevo Dia” were indefinitely suspended on Thursday after using racist slant-eyed gestures during a live broadcast in the aftermath of South Korea’s World Cup victory over Germany on Wednesday, according to a report in The Guardian newspaper.
During the telecast, James Tahhan and Janice Bencosme could be seen “using their fingers to narrow their eyes amid the on-set celebration of the Asian country’s improbable 2-0 win over the reigning world champions,” The Guardian reported.
The footage immediately went viral on social media, prompting Telemundo, the Miami-based Spanish language network which is part of NBC Universal, to take disciplinary action against the co-presentors on Thursday.
“We are extremely disappointed with our morning show contributors James Tahhan’s and Janice Bencosme’s gestures referring to the South Korean national soccer team,” the network said in a statement issued on Thursday.
“Our company takes this kind of inappropriate behavior very seriously as it is contrary to our values and standards.”
Tahhan, the Venezuelan restaurateur known as Chef James, has apologized on his Twitter account for his “lack of sensitivity on my part.”
He added: “I admit that I did something wrong and wanted to apologize to anyone who was offended by it.”