Kristi Capel (pictured), co-anchor of a FOX affiliate, Cleveland morning news show, dropped the racial epithet, “jigaboo” on Monday morning to describe songstress Lady Gaga’s Oscar performance. The former beauty queen was not only on live television when she laughingly spewed the verbal faux pas twice but her on-air colleague just happens to be an older black male.

She has been suspended for three days, and is expected to return to the air on Monday, March 2, reports Cleveland.com.

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Capel, a former beauty queen who grew up in Kentucky claims she thought she had made up a word, did not even know it existed. The anchor claims she was so impressed with Gaga’s performance of a “Sound of Music” medley. “It’s hard to really hear her voice with all that jigaboo music that she does, or whatever you want to call it. Jigaboo. She has a gorgeous voice. I never knew. Very nice.”

Ironically, when Capel uttered the word “jigaboo,” a contemptuous term that was once used to disparage blacks, her colleague, Wayne Dawson (pictured), uttered a nervous laugh, as the pair broadcasted their segment together.

Fuming viewers who knew exactly what ‘jigaboo’ meant, and flew to social media to lambaste Capel. The anchor then went on Twitter to apologize for using the racial slur explaining, “I deeply regret my insensitive comment. I didn’t know the meaning and would never intentionally use hurtful language. I sincerely apologize.”

Watch the contriteness here:

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