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CBS apologises for Amazing Race segment

CBS has apologised after The Amazing Race has contestants running around a war memorial in Hanoi, Vietnam.

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2013-03-25_1642CBS has apologised to US war veterans following a segment of The Amazing Race filmed in Hanoi, Vietnam.

The segment saw contestants hunting for their next clue at a Hanoi War Memorial which includes wreckage of a downed U.S. B-52 and it featured a choir singing a tribute to the Vietnam Communist Party.

The twisted metal of the downed plane had a bright Amazing Race ‘Double-U-Turn’ signed planted in front of it, signifying to contestants the next phase of their hunt.

The Veterans of Foreign Wars and American Legion organizations criticised CBS because two Americans were killed when the bomber went down.

“Parts of last Sunday’s episode, filmed in Vietnam, were insensitive to a group that is very important to us — our nation’s veterans,” said a CBS statement.

“We want to apologise to veterans, particularly those who served in Vietnam, as well as to their families and any viewers who were offended by the broadcast.”

American Legion National Commander and Vietnam War veteran James E. Koutz accepted the apology, saying, “We believe it to be sincere and heartfelt. We would like to thank the hundreds, if not thousands, of people who supported us through their Facebook comments, tweets, e-mails and phone calls.”

The episode screened in Australia on 7mate.

Source: Deadline

11 Responses

  1. @muscledude_oz…The US and Vietnam have had Dip/relations since 1995,Clinon achevied that while Monica was on leave.These networks must be loosing the plot,Jane Fonda conducting the choir would of been a ratings bonaza…

  2. This was stupid right from the get-go. The Vietnam War remains a sore point with Americans, many of whom still see the war as a noble cause and there is lingering shame over the way veterans were treated in the years after they returned. The US still doesn’t have diplomatic relations with Vietnam almost 40 years after the war ended. Australia under the Whitlam government established diplomatic relations within a week of the fall of Saigon in 1975.

    Pop culture is a good barometer of sentiment towards the war. The first post-Vietnam War song released in Australia was Cold Chisel’s Khe Sanh in 1978. A similar song in the US wasn’t released until 1984 – Bruce Springsteen’s Born In the USA.

  3. What about a few years ago when they went to the Rail lines at Auschwitz, fair enough they lit a candle and had a moment silence but that exactly want a great moment in life.

    Its not like they hopped on the B-52 and climbed all over it. But its nice that CBS apologised.

  5. I’m not surprised. When I heard and saw the Communist victory song played in full, I thought: “Uh-oh, this is not going to go down well with most older Vietnamese people”.

    It reminds me of when SBS had to suspend the ‘Thoi Su’ Vietnamese news program from its World Watch schedule back in 2003 because of complaints within the Vietnamese-Australian community of Communist biased and propaganda.

  6. Goof grief, if anything I felt they were taking the piss out of Communism with the whole treatment of the song and everything. It really felt like they were making light of that.

  8. Simple mistake, respectfully addressed after listening to complaints. This is exactly how it should be. We shouldn’t be afraid to speak out if something offends and those responsible should be heard when they address it and apologise.

  10. With all due respect, I think people are being a little precious. The veterans were “offended” by what exactly? The fact there was a U-Turn sign near the memorial? I must be missing how this is “insensitive.”

    TAR has been to all sorts of memorials over the years, including Hiroshima and Auschwitz-Berkinau and to my knowledge, no such complaints have ever been made.

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