back to article Re/code apologizes for Holocaust 'joke' tweet

Apple blog Re/code has pulled, and apologized for, a tasteless tweet about the Holocaust. The unfunny gag was cracked after a consortium of German car manufacturers has bought Nokia's maps business. Linking to a story by senior reporter Ina Fried on the purchase, Re/code's official twitter account emitted this about 0645 PT on …

  1. oldtaku Silver badge

    They definitely have an internal chat/locker room where they discuss stories and make terrible jokes like that if they're like every other media organization on the planet. Except you guys of course - you just do those in the article titles.

  2. Hasham

    There's plenty of good holocaust jokes

    Most people are just too pc to admit it though

    1. Mark 85

      Re: There's plenty of good holocaust jokes

      I heard most them in grade school or so it seems. I think discretion became fashionable about age 13 or so...

    2. wolfetone Silver badge

      Re: There's plenty of good holocaust jokes

      Most humour is based on something tasteless, something that's offensive.

      I can put it very simply here, and I really couldn't give a single fiddly f**k if I get down voted for it.

      There's plenty of Irish jokes, Potato jokes going around even though the famine caused huge devastation to Ireland that it still hasn't recovered from. But people don't look at it the same way as the Holocaust, even though it's well documented the British did very little to help and actually accelerated the problem.

      ITV are bad for it, they allow this Keith Lemon prat to say "Potato" in an Irish accent every time something relating to Ireland is mentioned. But it's allowed, laughed at. ITV are so bad actually that a year or two ago someone on the ITV Twitter feed cracked a very offensive joke about the Irish when Celtic qualified for Europe. I don't see the apology from ITV about the tweet, and I don't see the article from The Register about it.

      There is also plenty of anti-Muslim/anti-Palestinian jokes doing the rounds right now in Israel. When it's apparent what Israel have done and continue to do is on par with what happened during Apartheid or even World War 2.

      The thing is, society can't turn a blind eye to the above while it denounces any sort of humor regarding the Holocaust. You either laugh at all of it, or none of it. It's disgusting that there seems to be two, three, God knows how many tiers. And I would bet pounds to doughnuts that the people who have kicked off about this Holocaust joke, who will down vote this post, have in the recent past laughed or told an offensive joke.

      </rant>

      1. Khaptain Silver badge

        Re: There's plenty of good holocaust jokes

        Nothing rantish there Wolfetone, you have stated fact rather than fiction... The PC brigade are a result of societies failure to address it's current issues and until it does the PC brigade will keep growing as will it's detractors.

        1. ThomH

          Re: There's plenty of good holocaust jokes

          On the contrary, the tasteless school of humour is nowhere near the majority of jokes — there are puns, there's observation humour, there's absurdism and non sequiturs, satire, wit, sarcasm, and probably about a million more.

          It's also not something that anywhere near everyone finds funny, as reassuring as that fiction might be to some. If you enjoy it then good for you, but keep some objectivity.

          1. Khaptain Silver badge

            Re: There's plenty of good holocaust jokes

            @ThomH

            Where do we currently stand on the sinusoidal line that society bobs up and down upon, and where exactly on that line lies the "tasteless school of humour", I am convinced that it stands at the opposite side of the slope to that of PC brigade.

            1. Anonymous Coward
              Anonymous Coward

              Re: There's plenty of good holocaust jokes

              > "the opposite side of the slope to that of PC brigade."

              Umm, you're not allowed to use "slope" any more (ask J Clarkson)

              :)

          2. Chris Evans

            Most jokes are at someone else's expense

            Most jokes are at someone else's expense apart from dirty jokes and you often could argue that they are as well. Yes there are "puns, there's observation humour, there's absurdism and non sequiturs, satire, wit, sarcasm, and probably about a million more." Unfortunately most jokes don't fall into those categories. It is a pleasant change when I do hear such jokes.

        2. Hollerith 1

          Re: There's plenty of good holocaust jokes

          "Politically correct" started out as a not using words or phrases, or jokes, about people that were offensive to those people. Also, not using names that were offensive. If First Nation Canadians would prefer to be called that than "injun", then the PC line was to respect their wishes. It was not a preemptive cringe or censorship, it was common courtesy.

          1. SundogUK Silver badge

            Re: There's plenty of good holocaust jokes

            Bullshit. "Politically correct" has always been about attempting to control peoples thoughts by controlling their language.

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: There's plenty of good holocaust jokes

        I was going to say something similar. I have seen many jokes that others would find offensive. However, when it comes to the Holocaust, one cannot say anything that may offend a tiny bit. All other topics such as religion and race seems to be a "gloves off" contest and people compete to be as obnoxious to those they are ridiculing as they can.

        Freedom of speech when you feel like it.

        1. Hollerith 1

          Re: There's plenty of good holocaust jokes

          Actually, in a decent civil society, it would be nice if people decided "what the heck: I have the fredom to say it, I can say it, but how about, just maybe this time, I keep my mouth shut." Kind of like adulthood. Crazy, I know.

        2. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: There's plenty of good holocaust jokes

          "However, when it comes to the Holocaust, one cannot say anything that may offend a tiny bit. All other topics such as religion and race seems to be a "gloves off" contest"

          I blame germany's attitude toward history. They can be real nazis when it comes to the holocaust.

        3. Mark 85

          Re: There's plenty of good holocaust jokes

          All other topics such as religion and race seems to be a "gloves off" contest and people compete to be as obnoxious to those they are ridiculing as they can.

          Err.... no. There's lots and lots of the PC crowd making stuff off limits. You can make fun of Middle-Easterners but not Muslims. You can only use the "N" word in a joke if you're black. The list goes on...

      3. Jimboom

        Re: There's plenty of good holocaust jokes

        Here here! Have an upvote good Sir!

        Fact is that offence can never be given, it can only ever be taken.

      4. Pookietoo

        Re: There's plenty of good holocaust jokes

        Dark humour is based on something tasteless or offensive - there are many other types.

    3. PleebSmash
      Coat

      Re: There's plenty of good holocaust jokes

      I'd rate that joke a 9 out of 11 on the holocaust joke scale.

    4. tony72

      Re: There's plenty of good holocaust jokes

      I have to admit, that re/code one gave me the best laugh I've had in ages. It's like gallows humour though, isn't it? Bad s**t happens in the world, if you can't laugh at it, it's going to drag you down.

    5. arnieL

      Re: There's plenty of good holocaust jokes

      Go on then. Got any about the Rwandan genocide whilst you're at it?

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: There's plenty of good holocaust jokes

        Rwandan genocide jokes? Challenge accepted.

        What do you call a murdered Rwandan floating down a river?

        Bob.

  3. Mystic Megabyte
    FAIL

    Foot in mouth

    Blurting out some offensive crap is possibly excusable when you are drunk but not really a good idea when sober.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Pint

      Re: Foot in mouth

      How do you know they were sober?

  4. Nate Amsden

    not offended easily enough

    So I don't use twitter, or facebook.

  5. Henry Wertz 1 Gold badge

    Nonsensical and unfunny

    Don't get me wrong, I find no contradiction in finding a joke to be in bad taste and still be funny. But not only was this 'joke' tweet in bad taste and unfunny, since Nokia's not (say) an Isreali firm it meets the trifecta by also being nonsensical.

    It really seems like something a troll would post rather than someone posting on a company's twitter feed.

    1. Phat Tran

      Re: Nonsensical and unfunny

      It was actually an unfunny anti-German joke.

  6. frank ly

    Everything is personal in some way, to someone, somewhere.

    'Q: What's blue and doesn't fit? A: A dead epileptic.'

    I heard that joke a few days after my sister died as a result of trauma suffered during an epileptic fit. I thought about it carefully and decided that it was funny but I didn't laugh. I didn't have any kind of 'words' with the person who told the joke either, because I knew that I would have laughed at it a few days previously.

    1. Dave 126 Silver badge

      Re: Everything is personal in some way, to someone, somewhere.

      An epilectic friend of mine has a wicked dark sense of humour - i might try that one out on her next i see her!

      You're right, me doing so behind closed doors at people i know is not the same as broadcasting it to world plus dog.

  7. wagga

    Siri Says

    Do you know any Holocaust jokes?

    No. They are tasteless. Anne Frankly, I don't care

  8. Michael Thibault

    >90 per cent of which were Jews

    90 per cent of whom were Jews

    1. Pookietoo

      Re: 90 per cent of whom were Jews

      There's a tips and corrections link at the bottom of the article.

  9. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Could anyone please explain to me how installing Finnish software on a German automobile (which, incidentally, could come out of a US, South African, Brazilian or indeed German factory) would produce a star somewhere on the vehicle (I assume the NAV system) and make it point, of all directions, to the LEFT ?

    I have can only speculate on what the FacePlant comedian was trying to express, but I have no idea on how this could be accomplished with the given 'joke' information.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Your sense of humour appears to be somewhat impaired. Explaining a joke to someone who didn't get it never renders funny to that person, but I'll do it anyway; allow me to elaborate. Jewish BMW driver suddenly finds that ze Germans have taken over his navigation software. Given that the Jewish people have not yet forgotten what ze Germans did to them only a few decades ago, the Jewish person makes a dark joke about where exactly his newly German-controlled navigation software will send him as he drives past Birkenau (which happens to be on his left in the scenario of the joke).

      1. Pookietoo

        Re: Explaining a joke

        So where does it state that Ina Fried is Jewish? It's not a conclusively Jewish name. Maybe if the "joke" alluded to a yellow star, or Star of David, it might have been clearer.

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        My sense of humour is quite well, thanksverymuch.. Thank you for trying to explain, but I still think it wasn't much of a joke to begin with, more an effort at general oafishness, quite incompetently executed..

  10. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    if you want to hear good jokes about that topic you have to ask the jews themself

    for them it is not only politically correct but they have often also a dark humor.

    One recent:

    Jews in israel complained about the soft security at the concentration camp dachau, after the main gate was stolen in November 2015.

  11. lukewarmdog

    Stick with what you know

    If your reputation is based on reviewing computers you should probably not post jokes. Similarly i would protest in short form if Frankie Boyle posted a serious review of Windows 10.

    There are plenty of keyboard / social justice warriors out there that will force you to apologise for what you've typed that you need to make sure what you wrote came from the "I don't give a crap" account and not the "my site has serious investors trying to make money off this" account.

    1. Pookietoo

      Re: Stick with what you know

      I would love to read Frankie Boyle's review of Windows X.

  12. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Meanwhile

    Meanwhile the fella killing people at israel's gay pride march isn't branded a terrorist. If he was a Muslim...

    1. arnieL

      Re: Meanwhile

      He doesn't appear to be getting the thumbs up.

      http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Police-Man-stabs-four-people-at-Jerusalem-gay-pride-parade-410687

      Perhaps if he was Muslim he'd get a warmer reception from the (possibly slightly conflicted) left, eh Khapitan?

  13. I ain't Spartacus Gold badge

    Was it some kind of test?

    I did a survey once, got picked off the street to a local building which they used to use for lots of market research things. I had happy memories of that building, my Mum doing a test on tinned spaghetti when I was 4 or 5. My favourite at the time. While she was answering the questions, I polished off all the samples in sight. Yummy. My vote was for all of them. This time I got a voucher for my troubles.

    It was on behalf of ITV, and they gave me a bunch of cards with TV program ideas, and I had to rate them in order of likelihood I'd watch and enjoy.

    Some of them were obviously real programs, so there was a description of the Bill and London's Burning (or programs very like them). And then in the comedy ideas I found "a sitcom about the holocaust, set in a concentration camp". I'd love to know if someone genuinely wanted to make this program, and it was being market tested, or if the researchers were actually testing my reactions.

    Obviously I rated it as more fun than Emerdale Farm...

    1. Erewhon

      Re: Was it some kind of test?

      Monkey Tennis?

    2. Mark 85

      Re: Was it some kind of test?

      Well, they did a hit comedy series set in a German prisoner of war camp so maybe it was a real possibility... But then again, Hogan's Heroes was a stateside show.

  14. Georgie

    "It was sent in error from this account"? So which account did they intend to use to make that staggeringly offensive and tasteless joke? And how exactly does one send a tweet "in error"? Do you drop your sandwich on the keyboard and accidentally type that out? Or maybe they still think it's funny but need to pretend to apologise to appease social media?

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