Google ‘Deeply Sorry’ for BAFTA News Alert That Included N-Word, Says the Message Was Not AI-Generated
Google apologized Tuesday for sending out an “offensive notification” about the recent BAFTA Film Awards controversy, which included the use of the N-word.
The inclusion of the slur in the message, which Google confirmed to Variety was received by a “only a very small subset” of app users who receive push notifications, was not due to a system error involving AI, as has been incorrectly reported. According to Google, the system’s safety filters did not correctly trigger when it “recognized a euphemism for an offensive term on several web pages, and accidentally applied the offensive term to the notification text.”
The push notification in question linked to an article from The Hollywood Reporter with the headline, “How the Tourette’s Fallout Unfolded at the BAFTA Film Awards,” and Google included further text that read “See more on,” followed by the N-word.
“We’re deeply sorry for this mistake,” a Google spokesperson said Tuesday. “We’ve removed the offensive notification and are working to prevent this from happening again.”
The notification controversy comes amid ongoing fallout from Sunday’s BAFTA Film Awards, during which Tourette’s syndrome activist John Davidson involuntarily shouted the N-word while Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo were presenting on stage. The pre-taped moment was aired without editing.
In a letter to BAFTA members sent Tuesday, BAFTA Chair Sara Putt and CEO Jane Millichip discussed the incident, stating they wanted to “acknowledge the harm this has caused, address what happened and apologise to all.” They also said that a “comprehensive review” was now underway.
The inclusion of the slur in the message, which Google confirmed to Variety was received by a “only a very small subset” of app users who receive push notifications, was not due to a system error involving AI, as has been incorrectly reported. According to Google, the system’s safety filters did not correctly trigger when it “recognized a euphemism for an offensive term on several web pages, and accidentally applied the offensive term to the notification text.”
The push notification in question linked to an article from The Hollywood Reporter with the headline, “How the Tourette’s Fallout Unfolded at the BAFTA Film Awards,” and Google included further text that read “See more on,” followed by the N-word.
“We’re deeply sorry for this mistake,” a Google spokesperson said Tuesday. “We’ve removed the offensive notification and are working to prevent this from happening again.”
The notification controversy comes amid ongoing fallout from Sunday’s BAFTA Film Awards, during which Tourette’s syndrome activist John Davidson involuntarily shouted the N-word while Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo were presenting on stage. The pre-taped moment was aired without editing.
In a letter to BAFTA members sent Tuesday, BAFTA Chair Sara Putt and CEO Jane Millichip discussed the incident, stating they wanted to “acknowledge the harm this has caused, address what happened and apologise to all.” They also said that a “comprehensive review” was now underway.