An ABC affiliated news station got its priorities horribly wrong last night, reassuring celebrity dance fans that they wouldn't have to endure the very serious situation unfolding in Ferguson, St Louis for long.
"Don't worry, Dancing with the Stars will be back after the special report. #Ferguson" WTVC NewsChannel 9 tweeted as the grand jury verdict was announced .
Outrage rained in, with one viewer tweeting the station: "Wow I guess dancing with the stars is more important than a young black life" and another adding: "A man is dead. A family is grieving. A city is burning. Nobody gives a damn tonight about 'Dancing with the Stars.'"
It was a very silly mistake and the station backpedalled furiously, issuing a series of apology tweets along with ones directed at individuals.
"No, please - it was a mistake, it won't happen again, we promise," a man named Gary who works at the station wrote.
But it fell on deaf ears.
"It's too late now. You should have apologized to everyone earlier and stopped tweeting," a viewer wrote.
"For a meltdown of epic proportions, watch @newschannelnine try to recover from its awful tweet. But hey, they follow back!" Jessie Opoien tweeted.
The St Louis suburb of Ferguson was gripped by violent protests once more last night , after a grand jury chose not to bring charges against Darren Wilson, the white police officer who shot dead Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager, on 9 August.
In pictures: New Ferguson unrestShow all 55 1 /55In pictures: New Ferguson unrest
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Police officers in riot gear line up against protesters in Ferguson
AFP
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Protesters link arms as they block the road in front of the Ferguson Police Department
EPA
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest National Guard troops stand guard outside the Ferguson Police Department after violent protests engulfed the area
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In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Police officers in riot gear hold a line as they watch protests in St Louis, Missouri, over the shooting of Michael Brown
AFP
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Protesters march through Los Angeles on Tuesday, the day after a grand jury decided not to prosecute the police officer who fatally shot Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, in August
Reuters
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Protestors chant slogans in Los Angeles during demonstrations against a decision by a Ferguson
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A police squad car is turned over by demonstrators during a protest in Ferguson
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A protestor confronts police vehicles with her hands up as police attempt to clear the streets in Ferguson
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Police officers react to violent protesters during a second night of protests in Ferguson
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A protester adds wood to a fire burning in Oakland
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A New York City Police NYPD officer struggles with demonstrators protesting against the verdict announced in the shooting death of Michael Brown, as they block traffic near the Lincoln Tunnel in New York
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Demonstrators march with their hands raised in protest against a grand jury's decision not to indict Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson in the shooting of Michael Brown in New York's Time Square
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A demonstrator sits in front of a street fire during a demonstration following the grand jury decision in the Ferguson, Missouri shooting of Michael Brown, in Oakland. The grand jury decided not to indict a white police officer over the fatal August shooting of an unarmed black teenager
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A protestor is arrested as police clear the area rond the police headquarters in Ferguson
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Michael Brown's mother Leslie McSpadden (left) and other protesters react after hearing the grand jury decision in the fatal shooting of her son in Ferguson, Missouri
Getty Images
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A demonstrator holds a protest sign in Oakland after the announcement of the grand jury decision not to indict Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson in the fatal shooting of Michael Brown, an unarmed black 18-year-old
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Police guard the Ferguson police department as rioting erupts following the disclosure of the grand jury decision in the killing of Michael Brown
Getty Images
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Police in riot gear tangle with a woman in front of emergency vehicles in Ferguson Missouri
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Police fire tear gas at protesters in Ferguson
AFP/Getty Images
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A protester holding a flare runs on Highway 580 during a demonstration following the grand jury decision in Ferguson
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A protestor stands in front of police vehicles with his hands up
Getty Images
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Men try to stop protesters from throwing rocks at local businesses after a grand jury returned no indictment in the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Protestors stand and kneel in the street as police advance on them in Ferguson
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A protester burns an American flag on Highway 580 during a demonstration following the grand jury decision in the Ferguson, Missouri shooting of Michael Brown, in Oakland
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Riot policemen clash with protesters in Ferguson
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A man walks past a burning building during rioting after a grand jury returned no indictment in the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Michael Brown's mother Leslie McSpadden (C) and other protesters react after hearing the grand jury decision in the fatal shooting of her son in Ferguson
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Dante Kaleo holds a protest sign while marching on Interstate 580 in Oakland
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest People lay on the ground on Rodeo Drive and Wilshire Blvd during a demonstration in Beverly Hills, following the grand jury decision in the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A gas station burns as demonstrators protest the Grand Jury decision not to indict police officer Darren Wilson over the shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A woman treats her face for possible tear gas exposure in Ferguson Missouri
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Protestors parade in the parking lot of a burning auto parts store in Ferguson
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Police grab a protester during a demonstration in Oakland
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Protesters block Interstate 580 in Oakland
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Cars burn at a dealership in Dellwood
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A woman gets water poured on her face after police pepper sprayed demonstrators attempting to stop traffic on Interstate 5 following the grand jury decision in the Ferguson, Missouri shooting of Michael Brown, in Seattle
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A police vehicle passes a business set ablaze by protestors in Ferguson
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest People walk away from a warehouse in flames after the grand jury's decision
AP
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A building burns opposite Canfield Drive, the street where Michael Brown was shot
Tim Walker
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Demonstrators flee as police fire tear gas during a demonstration to protest the death 18-year-old Michael Brown
GETTY
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A police car burns in Ferguson, Missouri
AP
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A group of people raise their arms while chanting "Hands Up, Don't Shoot" during a protest
AP
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Police officers confront protesters after the announcement of the grand jury decision not to indict police officer Darren Wilson
AP
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A group of protesters vandalize a police vehicle
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In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Protesters vandalize a police car outside the Ferguson Police Department
REUTERS
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A woman approaches the barricade to confront the police outside the Ferguson Police Department
REUTERS
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A protester stands with his hands on his head as a cloud of tear gas approaches after a grand jury returned no indictment
REUTERS
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest St. Louis County police officers stand guard in front of the Ferguson police department
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In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Protesters gather in front of the Ferguson Police Department before the announcement of the grand jury decision
AP
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest People embrace at the memorial location for Michael Brown in Ferguson Missouri,
EPA
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A police officer secures an area around the Buzz Westfall Justice Center in Clayton, Missouri where a grand jury is considering whether to indict a white Ferguson police officer who shot and killed an 18-year-old black teenager, Michael Brown.
JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Police rush in to break up protesters outside the Ferguson Police Station in Ferguson, Missouri
EPA
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Michael Brown's family attorney Anthony Gray (L) speaks during an announcement for Justice Disciple volunteers
Reuters
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest A makeshift memorial on the street in Ferguson where Michael Brown died
Getty
In pictures: New Ferguson unrest Ferguson protest Demonstrators in Ferguson, Missouri, mount a protest ahead of the grand jury’s decision. Such protests have been ongoing in the city since 18-year-old Michael Brown’s killing
Getty
Buildings and cars were torched, businesses looted and the sound of gunfire shuddered out at regular intervals as demonstrators and armoured police clashed across parts of the city.
Tear gas and rubber bullets were fired by police, while a Walgreens pharmacy and a Little Caesars pizza place were both gutted by fire. A public storage facility, petrol stations and other restaurants were also set ablaze.
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