Microsoft issues apology after people take offense to perceived racial slur in Dead Rising 4 email

midian182

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Companies don’t always get it right when it comes to marketing their products. Razer found itself it some very hot water a few weeks ago after the company posted a (now deleted) tweet referencing the lack of an SD card in Apple’s new MacBook Pro. “Call yourself a Pro? S my D,” it read. But while some firms knowingly court controversy with these sort of messages, some are genuinely unintentional.

Yesterday, Microsoft sent out a Xbox promotional email for Dead Rising 4. As the series famously features the undead, the company decided to use a series of letters in the subject line that are meant to be read and pronounced as a noise that zombies typically make: “NNNNGGGHHHAAAA.”

Unfortunately for Microsoft, some people took offense to the word, claiming that it looks and sounds a bit too much like a certain racial slur.

The response was enough for Microsoft to issue an apology via Larry “Major Nelson” Hryb. He Tweeted: “Today we sent a DR4 email where a zombie roar was interpreted by many as a racial slur. We apologize and promise to do better next time.”

It shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise to learn that more people appear to be annoyed at the apology than the original email. Microsoft obviously didn't want to purposely offended people, and no doubt didn’t expect the way they spelled a zombie groan to cause outrage.

So remember, if you’re trying to write a stereotypical zombie noise, it may be best to stick with the classic “BRRAAAAAAIIINNNSSS,” or, for purists, “GGGGRAAAAARRRRR.”

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It's too late for the US, we are beyond saving. Instead of apologizing maybe they should have said "Stop being overly sensitive to an out of context self-imposed meaning"

These people make **** up in their head, get offended by it and then yell at other people about it. Some people are so blind it's ridiculous. People are worried about a videogame rather than the other half the world living in poverty and the other billion people starving. Next thing you know they wont let kids read "To Kill a Mockingbird" because it offends people.

These people need to get struck by some gluten free lightning.
 
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I wonder what nationality ceo nadella is if trump isn't supposed to be like this, and he doesn't like the kkk, not that some white people aren't n words themselves. Not talking about trump. And I hate to say nazism is extreme, as my brother's name is dave and dave duke or whatever his name is is the head, but in homer glen, il where he lives I've never seen any minorities. They used to tease me at the university of chicago lab school even tho I lived in chicago, that I lived in a gated community where if your skin is a shade darker than pale white, they wouldn't let you in. Seems that that's what my brother has achieved, and he says he likes it. Just hope he's not in whatever minority group they want to bully this month, not that I won't go with whoever our leader is. Oak brook, il is actually a gated community, but they have indians from india there and other asians and saudis. Italians too.
 
Clearly unintentional and while it might be spelt like a racial slur, it's pretty clear it isn't meant to be pronounced like it.

Storm in a teacup.
 
It must be nice to have a life so full, so lacking in stress and worry and with so little to do that one can spend the energy to get worked up about utterly insignificant things like this.

And yes, I see the irony of my post ;)
 
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