PR exec Justine Sacco apologises for racist tweet

A PUBLIC relations professional who caused a global backlash by posting an incredibly offensive Twitter comment about Africa and AIDS has apologised for her behaviour.

Justine Sacco, who works for media company IAC, sent out her tweet to more than 4300 followers as she boarded a plane for South Africa from London's Heathrow Airport.

"Going to Africa. Hope I don't get AIDS. Just kidding. I'm white!" she wrote, in a tweet that quickly went viral while she was mid-flight with no inteet access.

Oveight, Sacco issued an apology saying she was "very sorry for the pain I have caused".

"Words cannot express how sorry I am, and how necessary it is for me to apologise to the people of South Africa, who I have offended due to a needless and careless tweet," Sacco said in the statement, which was first released to South African newspaper The Star.

"There is an AIDS crisis taking place in this country, that we read about in America, but do not live with or face on a continuous basis. Unfortunately, it is terribly easy to be cavalier about an epidemic that one has never witnessed firsthand.

"For being insensitive to this crisis - which does not discriminate by race, gender or sexual orientation, but which terrifies us all uniformly - and to the millions of people living with the virus, I am ashamed.

"This is my father's country, and I was bo here. I cherish my ties to South Africa and my frequent visits, but I am in anguish knowing that my remarks have caused pain to so many people here; my family, friends and fellow South Africans. I am very sorry for the pain I caused."

Sacco told ABC News that her "greatest conce was this statement reach South Africa first."

A representative from IAC (which is the parent company of Vimeo, Tinder and About.com and many more) released a statement confirming Sacco had been fired.

"The offensive comment does not reflect the views and values of IAC," the statement said. "We take this issue very seriously, and we have parted ways with the employee in question.

"There is no excuse for the hateful statements that have been made and we condemn them unequivocally. We hope, however, that time and action, and the forgiving human spirit, will not result in the wholesale condemnation of an individual who we have otherwise known to be a decent person at core."

IAC had earlier released a statement condemning Sacco's joke.

"This is an outrageous, offensive comment that does not reflect the views and values of IAC.

"Unfortunately, the employee in question is unreachable on an inteational flight, but this is a very serious matter and we are taking appropriate action," the statement said.

The former director of corporate communications at IAC has since deleted her Twitter account.

IAC also removed any mention of her name from its website and contacts page.

She was earlier listed as a media representative.