As 2023 approaches, ABC News recently aired an end-of-the-year special—which included a tribute to the stars we lost throughout 2022. However, there was one major problem during Takeoff‘s segment within the tribute: a photo of fellow Migos rapper Quavo was used instead.
The special, dubbed The Year: 2022, aired on Dec. 26, and it was hosted by Robin Roberts of Good Morning America.
During the “In Memoriam” segment at the end of the program, numerous stars like Olivia Newton John, Coolio, and Stephen “tWitch” Boss were warmly honored. A portion of the segment was also dedicated to Takeoff, who was gunned down in Houston back on Nov. 1.
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However, viewers noticed that—rather than Takeoff—a photo of Quavo was used instead.
Hey @ABC, this isn’t the rapper, Takeoff, that was killed in 2022. The photo you used is of another rapper… @QuavoStuntin…who is still alive. Same rap group, different Black man. pic.twitter.com/ZsGML5Vo9D
— Ivan Pierre Aguirre : 🥑 (@i_p_a_1) December 27, 2022
Twitter Calls The Mistake ‘Disrespectful AF’ & ABC News Apologizes
Of course, the egregious error was caught by many others, and they took to social media to call the program out. They were also sure to bring the receipts!
disrespectful af @ABC for showing a photo of Quavo instead of Takeoff… 🤦♂️🤦♂️🤦♂️🤦♂️ pic.twitter.com/5kpi0RAhn9
— recede🥳 (@rec3de) December 28, 2022
ABC didn’t have anyone that knew which member of The Migos was Takeoff and which was Quavo? SMH. #TheYear pic.twitter.com/2IkcxJy17N
— Bravis Tickle (@O_Shaw) December 27, 2022
@abc this is Quavo, not Takeoff 😫 pic.twitter.com/RQgGE8EGch
— caliphornia QING (@caliphorniaqing) December 27, 2022
How did ABC manage to show a pic of Quavo in the in memoriam to Takeoff just now? Am I off or was that what just happened?
— Dr. Nicki Washington (@dr_nickiw) December 27, 2022
The company later issued an apology, noting that the “unfortunate error” was fixed in an updated version of the special.
We apologize for the unfortunate error in a previous version of ‘The Year: 2022.’ It has been corrected: https://t.co/MOwJXc40pS
— ABC News Studios (@abcnewsstudios) December 27, 2022
E! Made A Similar Error With Offset Shortly After Takeoff Was Killed
Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time such an error has been made. Following the news of Takeoff’s untimely death, E! News mistakenly used a photo of Offset when reporting on the matter.
While the incident was promptly fixed, fans still took note were NOT pleased. On top of the photo, much of the backlash centered on E! allegedly trying to sweep their error under rug.
https://twitter.com/_chiinnaa/status/1587630355678482432?s=20&t=M5FA8nT2yH207nRf8KnzFw
https://twitter.com/femalerapgamee/status/1587636275464511490?s=20&t=Q39puTXK8VaJ1yop-WgL8Q
E news posted offset instead of Takeoff when they first reported his death and instead of apologizing they just deleted it. Black people do not all lookalike! Incredibly tacky AF! If you hired educated black people that never would’ve happened. @enews pic.twitter.com/tq9XNANYjc
— Neci (@Konfident_Pearl) November 2, 2022
One user went as far as to say that the matter “wasn’t an accident,” adding that “[white] media always does this to [B]lack celebs.”
e! news posting offset’s pic instead of takeoff wasn’t an accident. yt media always does this to black celebs. it’s not hard to fact check before posting. but why are y’all reporting news about someone you don’t know enough to recognize his face? like hire some black ppl asap
— valarie | dopamine. (@westsidemanii) November 2, 2022
What do you think about big-name media behemoths like ABC and E! confusing Takeoff with other Migos rappers?
