On a night reserved to honor the best in film and fawn over the beauty of the winning red carpet looks, last night (February 24, 2013) things took an ugly turn. From Oscar host Seth MacFarlane attempting to make humor of a variety of controversial topics - including slavery, domestic violence and murder - some Twitter users appeared to want to join in on the fun.
It has been no secret that Destiny's Child singer Michelle Williams has been the target of unwarranted criticism and jokes. Making light of fellow group member Kelly Rowland working the red carpet as a correspondent for ABC, entertainment and gossip website Bossip, poked fun at where Michelle could be. They tweeted, "Kelly Rowland gets to do the Red Carpet at the #Oscars. What do you think Michelle is doing right now??" The actress, who is currently starring in the Broadway musical, Fela, immediately responded showing her obvious frustration, "REALLY BOSSIP! These CHEAP shots are OLD now! If you'd like to know what I'm doing...go to http://www.felaonbroadway.com! Thank you!" While some Tweeters took the opportunity to sling ugly insults as to Michelle's whereabouts, many seemed to agree that the tweet by the popular urban blog was "unprofessional." Instead of using the chance to apologize or say it was "all in fun," they responded," Don't come for us @RealMichelleW, just be happy you got a day off babysitting Blue Ivy. Stay blessed though"
The most shocking statement of the night came from the Twitter account of The Onion, a satirical news site known for their off the cuff humor. In a tweet sent to its 4.6 million followers, the non-traditional news source sank to a new low when it targeted 9-year-old actress Quvenzhané Wallis. “Everyone else seems afraid to say it but that Quvenzhané Wallis is kind of a cunt, right? #Oscars2013," they tweeted before later deleting it. The irresponsible dig caused an uproar on Twitter, with many users expressing their outrage, with some calling for the unveiling of the responsible party.
Feeling the fire, The Onion's CEO, Steve Hannah, took to Twitter to share an apology posted on their Facebook fan page. In the address, Hannah called the act "crude and offensive" and said steps were taken to discipline the individuals responsible. He went on to say that new Twitter policies were implemented to ensure that it will not happen again.
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