Yahoo News Fires Washington Bureau Chief Over Romney Comments
Yahoo News fired Washington bureau chief David Chalian after he said on Wednesday during an online video broadcast that GOP nominee Mitt Romeny and his wife Ann did not care about African Americans suffering in the wake of Hurricane Issac.
Chalian seemed to not notice that a microphone was on when he made the comments that Yahoo later called "inappropriate."
"They're not concerned at all," Chalian said during an ABC News/Yahoo News broadcast, eliciting laughs from his colleagues. "They're happy to have a party with black people drowning."
The audio was posted by the conservative media watchdog NewsBusters, whose reporter Matthew Sheffield said the gaffe "provided the perfect example of the pervasive anti-Republican bias Mitt Romney faces in his bid to unseat President Barack Obama."
Chalian was immediately fired.
"David Chalian's statement was inappropriate and does not represent the views of Yahoo. He has been terminated effective immediately," a Yahoo spokeswoman said in a statement to TheWrap. "We have already reached out to the Romney campaign, and we apologize to Mitt Romney, his staff, their supporters and anyone who was offended."
Sheffield at first mistook Chalian for an ABC News reporter, but since corrected his post. Chalian served as the political director of ABC News until 2010 and Yahoo has partnered with ABC for this year's election coverage.
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