CNN senior reporter Dylan Byers apologized (sort of) on Tuesday night after launching one of the more memorably tone-deaf takes on the current epidemic of sexual harassment allegations against big media figures.

“Beyond the pain/humiliation women have endured (which is of course the paramount issue), it’s worth taking stock of the incredible drain of talent from media/entertainment taking place right now,” he wrote.

“Never has so much talent left the industry all at once.”

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Byers, who joined CNN in 2015 after covering media for Politico, quickly recanted his social media outburst.

“I’ve deleted my previous tweet,” he wrote Tuesday night. “It was poorly worded and didn’t properly convey my intended observation.”

I've deleted my previous tweet. It was poorly worded and didn't properly convey my intended observation. — Dylan Byers (@DylanByers) November 22, 2017

The walk-back was swift — coming after just about two hours — but not swift enough to prevent a fusillade of criticism from fellow Internet blue checks and the peanut gallery who accused him of focusing his attention on accusers instead of victims.

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Huh I wonder how this tweet went over pic.twitter.com/fzfHUBDXN8 — Olivia Nuzzi (@Olivianuzzi) November 22, 2017

RIP Dylan’s terrible tweet. May the screenshots last forever. — Sara Lang (@SaraLang) November 22, 2017

Easy to make fun of the horrible Dylan Byers take. But it also reveals the very pernicious assumption that prominent male journalists who departed are somehow more talented than the countless women who never got a chance. This attitude in media is pervasive & extraordinary toxic — Erica Hellerstein (@E_Hellerstein) November 22, 2017

Beyond the pain/humiliation Dylan Byers has endured (which is of course the paramount issue), it's worth taking stock of the incredible deletion of tweets taking place right now. Never has so much ratioing left the internet all at once. pic.twitter.com/PnRR0ZFa7W — Emmy Bengtson (@EmmyA2) November 22, 2017

it’s nuts how many talented, unemployed journalists i know while dylan byers will always have a six figure job – katherine krueger (@kath_krueger) November 22, 2017

Dylan do you need a woman to explain to you why this was a bad tweet – Helen Rosner (@hels) November 22, 2017

This tweet is the most embarrassing thing I've seen this week, and I saw a dog wearing a full rain suit today. — Andi Zeisler (@andizeisler) November 22, 2017

No, the idea that these guys were indispensable is what protected them for so long. Journalism will be just fine without them. Think of the talent that never broke in or left because of harassment. https://t.co/RyJTSbfFXI — Emily Rauhala (@emilyrauhala) November 22, 2017

What Dylan Byers meant to say is that it sucks that sexual predators are finally getting punished for their actions because he really enjoys binge-watching House of Cards and Charlie Rose reruns. — Leanna Renay (@leannuh_renay) November 22, 2017

Journalism as an industry has lost 250,000 jobs in the past two decades or so. I'm concerned with that. I am not concerned with rapists and serial harassers losing their jobs. Dylan Byers, retire boy — Noah Hurowitz (@NoahHurowitz) November 22, 2017

The week leading up to Thanksgiving has been unusually chock-full with disastrous news for powerful men in media, politics and entertainment and saw the New York Times’ Glenn Thrush suspended, CBS’s Charlie Rose fired, and Disney’s John Lasseter forced into a leave of absence.