The Australian newspaper has apologised to Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce over an article lampooning his Irish accent, according to an item in rival Fairfax Media newspapers.
The newspaper reported that columnist Imre Salusinszky mocked Joyce’s accent in an article on the statements the airline’s chief made to explain the ongoing investigation into the engine explosion on one of its Airbus A380s.
In the article in The Australian on November 17, Salusinszky reported Joyce as having said: "Tiz too arly ter judge waaat dat issue is an’ ‘oy long it ‘ill take ter be fixed … It cud be ahn issue wi’ de casin’ or it cud be an issue wi’ de turbo-ines…"
Joyce said he was "appalled and very annoyed" by the article, he told the Irish Echo, an Irish community newspaper in Australia.
"I was also very disappointed that the Irish community could be insulted in such a way by a major Australian newspaper," Joyce said.
The Australian’s editor Paul Whittaker wrote to apologise to Joyce.
"It was a mistake," Whittaker told the Echo. "The article slipped through … on a busy night."
Fairfax Media said the offending column has since been removed from The Australian’s website.
By TravelMole Australia
