Every year there is inevitably some celebrity or public figure who says something in the public eye which is viewed as offensive or politically incorrect. Such language use is generally seen as threatening face needs or representing values that are not in line with the politically correct (PC) aims of inclusion, respect, acceptance and equality.
In more extreme circumstances, the adjective 'cancelled' is used to describe a situation where people boycott or actively discourage others from supporting the person who has used the offensive language. This tendency has given rise to the alliterative collocation 'cancel culture,' which is frequently used by opponents of political correctness to criticise the censorship and perceived threat to free speech that PC may pose.
Below are some examples from 2022 of public figures who have apologised (or refused to!) for language that has been deemed 'politically incorrect' in the court of public opinion.
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In June 2022, American singer Lizzo was criticised by fans on Twitter for using the noun 'spaz', a shortening of 'spastic' in her song 'Grrrls'. This is considered an ableist slur in several varieties of English, including Australian English, although apparently this is not so much the case in America. Lizzo intended the lexical choice to represent losing control of one's body, but disability advocates on social media felt that it was inappropriate and disrespectful towards people who are affected by disabilities which prohibit their physical movement.
Even though Lizzo is an American artist (and we need to focus on Australian examples for English Language!) the incident was widely reported on in the Australian media, and so it is culturally relevant to Australians who listen to her music.
After seeing fans' tweets and discovering that the lyrical choice had caused offence, Lizzo re-recorded the song and released an apology on social media.
She was praised for her willingness to take on feedback about her language use and make changes in order to avoiding hurting people who suffer from disability.
Read more about it in the following articles:
Buzzfeed News - Lizzo releases new version of 'Grrrls'
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In April 2022, Liberal politician Katherine Deves was criticised and even received death threats for comments she made on Twitter about transgender people. In the now-deleted tweets, she compared left-wing people to 'Nazis' and described transgender children as 'surgically mutilated and sterilised.'
This lexical choice has extremely negative connotations, and was seen as threatening the face needs of both transgender individuals and the community of people that support them.
Ms Deves did apologise twice for her online comments, but former Prime Minister Scott Morrison condemned 'those who are seeking to cancel Katherine, simply because she has a different view on the issue of women and girls in sport.'
He further criticised the use of PC language in general, stating that people were sick of 'walk[ing] on eggshells every day because they may or may not say something one day that's going to upset someone.'
Read more about it in the following articles:
ABC News - Has Scott Morrison failed the 'character' test posed by his Warringah candidate Katherine Deves
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Finally, although it's not strictly related to politically correct language, in May 2022, Labor politician Tanya Plibersek apologised to Liberal Party leader Peter Dutton for saying that he looked like Lord Voldemort.
Dutton said he suffers from a skin condition which makes him bald, so perhaps her remarks could be seen as offensive to people who have this condition. In any case, the comparison was impolite and threatened Dutton's positive face needs.
Although Plibersek is certainly not the first person to make the comparison, this is a good example of how public language is held to a higher standard than language used in a private setting.
Left: Liberal Party Leader Peter Dutton
(not Lord Voldemort in a suit)
Read more about it in the following article:
The Guardian Australia - Tanya Plibersek apologises 'unreservedly' for comparing Peter Dutton to Voldemort
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