Publisher THQ Nordic has issued an official apology for their disastrous 'Ask Me Anything' chat was held on the online forum 8chan last week.
In a press release posted on the THQ Nordic Investors webpage, Co-founder of THQ Nordic AB, Lars Wingefors, offered his sincerest apologies to the gaming world for holding the AMA on 8chan, disavowing the AMA and the website.
As Co-Founder and Group CEO of THQ Nordic AB, I take full responsibility for all of THQ Nordic GmbH‘s actions and communications. I have spent the past several days conducting an internal investigation into this matter. I assure you that every member of the organization has learned from this past week’s events. I take this matter very seriously and we will take appropriate action to make sure we have the right policies and systems in place to avoid similar mistakes in the future.The website 8chan is an offshoot of the 4chan chat sites, is known to harbor posters of child pornography, and white supremacy. On Tuesday, February 26th, THQ Nordic GmbH's Marketing Director Philipp Brock announced the AMA on 8chan via twitter. Brock, along with a few other THQ Nordic employees, would then engage in the AMA amid public outcry over their decision.
Originally, THQ explained the AMA, in a tweet (which has since been deleted) stating that "the opportunity was here and we took it. We got approached in a very friendly and polite manner and were assured said person will take care of the nasty stuff. So, here we are."
Brock would claim full responsibility for the decision to host the AMA on the website, stating on twitter "I personally agreed to this AMA without doing my proper due diligence to understand the history and the controversy of the site." He would go on to condemn 8chan, echoing similar sentiments stated by Wingefors in the company's official statement today.
"As a Swedish based, fast growing group, we firmly support equality and diversity." noted Wingefors. "We are also working actively to combat discrimination, harassment, and misconduct."
Quick Take
THQ frankly made a massive blunder here, and rightfully got raked over the fire for agreeing to this AMA on such a terrible website. It is rare to have one of the top executive's issue such a stern statement for such a mistake as well. At the very least, good on the company for recognizing they screwed up.Hopefully, this is just a one-time mistake with THQ Nordic.
What are your thoughts on all of this? Leave your comments below.
