Airline Issues Apology After Using Actor in Blackface to Play Barack Obama in Controversial Ad

Italian airline Alitalia is apologizing after offending by hiring an actor in blackface to portray former President Barack Obama.

The ad, which was part of four Italian-language videos made to promote their newly announced nonstop flight from Rome to Washington, also included actors portraying President Donald Trump, George Washington and Abraham Lincoln.

The advertisement quickly garnered criticism across social media.

At first, the airline defended the ad, saying the actor was not Caucasian and that “makeup was applied to highlight features.”

On Wednesday (July 3), the company apologized and said that it would remove the ad from all of its social media channels.

“Alitalia deeply apologizes for the offense caused by the promotional video on our new Washington route. For our company, respect for everyone is mandatory, it was never our intention to hurt anyone and we will learn from what has happened,” they said in a statement.

Click here to see the ad that sparked outrage.