Reality TV star apologises for anti-gay 'pervert' comment

The star of ABC TV show 'The Bachelor' has apologised after making anti-gay comments that drew a swift rebuke from the network.

Juan Pablo Galavis told website The TV Page that he did not think a gay or bisexual bachelor would set a good example for children and gays were more “pervert, in a sense”, while adding that he could be mistaken.

Yesterday Galavis posted an apology on his Facebook page, saying he respected gay people, had gay friends, including one “who’s like a brother” and regretted using the word “pervert” – blaming the word choice on the fact that English is his second language, after Spanish.

“What I meant to say was that gay people are more affectionate and intense and for a segment of the TV audience this would be too racy to accept. The show is very racy as it is and I don’t let my five-year old daughter watch it,” the single father from Miami, Florida, wrote online.

In his apology, Galavis said his remarks were taken out of context and the full interview posted online by The TV Page demonstrated his respect for gay people and their families.

In a statement, ABC called his comments “careless, thoughtless and insensitive” and not representative of those of the network, the show’s producers or the studio.

'The Bachelor' returned on January 6 for its 18th edition.

ABC would not say whether Galavis would face any action for his remarks or whether the show would address them on an episode of 'The Bachelor'.

Galavis is the second reality TV star to draw recent attention over anti-gay comments.

A&E briefly suspended 'Duck Dynasty' patriarch Phil Robertson after he labelled gays as sinners in a GQ magazine interview and contended that African-Americans were happy under Jim Crow laws.

Supporters of Robertson’s right to voice his opinions rose to his defence before the network reinstated him. Unlike Galavis, Robertson did not publicly clarify or apologise for his comments.

Meanwhile Madonna has apologised for using a racial slur to refer to her white son on Instagram.

The singer posted a picture on Friday night of her 13-year-old son Rocco boxing and used a hashtag

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When fans objected, she defiantly called them haters, but in a statement yesterday she was contrite, saying: “Forgive me.”

Madonna said she was not a racist and did not mean to use the word as a slur but knew there is no way to defend its use. She said she used it as a term of endearment but apologised if it gave the wrong impression.

Besides Rocco, Madonna has three other children, including two black youngsters adopted from Malawi.