The CEO of the Australian media company Foxtel, which has nearly 4.7 million paid subscribers and which made about $330 million last quarter, has apologized “unreservedly” after a decade-old image surfaced of him performing a Nazi salute.
Patrick Delany told the Australian site Crikey, which first published the image, that he was “shocked” to see it. “The fact I demonstrated this offensive salute was wrong and I unreservedly apologize,” he told the site. (He was then CEO of Fox Sports Australia, which is distinct from the American Fox Sports.)
Delany also told the site that he was “demonstrating the similarity” between the Nazi salute and a gesture that sports fans use.
After Jewish groups criticized his performing the Nazi gesture, Delany wrote in an email to Foxtel staff, “I am very sorry for my actions and sincerely apologize to people who have been hurt or offended, especially members of the Jewish community,” and that “the picture is completely inconsistent with my values and beliefs, and family connections.”
Jewish groups in Australia reportedly accepted the apology.
Australia passed a law in December criminalizing performing Nazi salutes in public.