Psychology Today has apologized for a controversial blog post that outlined why Black women are considered less attractive. In a statement on the magazine’s website editor Kaja Perina said that the post that surfaced on the web earlier this month was not approved by the magazine.
“We deeply apologize for the pain and offense that this post caused. Psychology Today’s mission is to inform the public, not to provide a platform for inflammatory and offensive material,” said Perina “Psychology Today does not tolerate racism or prejudice of any sort.”
The blog post, written by Japanese evolutionary psychologist Satoshi Kanazawa, was titled “Why Are Black Women Less Physically Attractive Than Other Women” and later changed to “Why Are Black Women Rated Less Physically Attractive Than Other Women” before being taken down. However, the article still made its rounds on the internet causing outrage and backlash.
“We take full responsibility for its publication on our site. We have taken measures to ensure that such an incident does not occur again,” Perina said. “Again, we are deeply sorry for the hurt that this post caused.”
Reports indicate that Kanazawa is facing an investigation by the London School of Economics where he teaches. The student union at the school voted unanimously to dismiss him. No word yet on whether or not Psychology Today will continue keep Kanazawa as a regular blogger.