Ted Turner apologizes for remarks on Chinese

Ted Turner, chairman of the United Nations Foundation, speaks in front of representatives, during the plenary opening session of the WTO Public Forum "What WTO for the XXI Century" at the World Trade Organization (WTO) headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, Monday, Sept. 25, 2006. (AP Photo/KEYSTONE/Salvatore Di Nolfi) less Ted Turner, chairman of the United Nations Foundation, speaks in front of representatives, during the plenary opening session of the WTO Public Forum "What WTO for the XXI Century" at the World Trade ... more Photo: SALVATORE DI NOLFI Photo: SALVATORE DI NOLFI Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Ted Turner apologizes for remarks on Chinese 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

Media mogul and philanthropist Ted Turner apologized Tuesday for comments he made about China and Chinese people before the Bay Area Council last week in a talk on global warming.

Bay Area leaders had objected to his use of the term "Chinaman."

When asked before an audience of 1,000 business and community leaders last Thursday about how to win China's cooperation in reducing greenhouse gases, Turner said: "The Chinese are very smart. Just think: Have you ever met a dumb Chinaman?

"Very seldom do you see Chinese restaurants close," he continued in an audio clip of the speech provided by the Bay Area Council. "I'm in the restaurant business, and it's very tough. They work very hard."

Turner was referring to his Montana Grill chain, which has outlets in 18 states. He is best known as the founder of Turner Broadcasting in 1970 and CNN in 1980.

Community leaders and officials at the council immediately called for an apology.

"It was not the right thing to say, for someone like Ted Turner, who was talking about the need to reach out and make friends to accomplish what's really the world's business on the issue of global warming," Jim Wunderman, the council's chief executive, said Tuesday.

Radio host Ronn Owens, who had interviewed Turner, devoted part of his show on KGO Monday to exploring why the comments were hurtful.

Turner's apology came in a statement his spokesman released Tuesday.

"As many people know, I do not believe in any form of prejudice or discrimination and was unaware that the term 'Chinaman' was derogatory and hurtful to the Asian Pacific American community."

Vincent Pan, director of the Chinese for Affirmative Action in San Francisco, said, "As someone who is very involved in domestic and world politics, I think it's a bit suspect for him to suggest that he didn't realize it was a derogatory term.

"The difficulty is that many of these racist terms are so deeply ingrained in the culture, they pop up when you least expect it. "

Yvonne Lee, a former commissioner of the U.S. Civil Rights Commission, said the apology was the first step, but she wants him to agree to further "dialogue between different communities."

This story has been modified since it appeared in print editions.