Reporter slammed for smiling photos in front of horrific crash that killed 18
A young reporter who posed smiling for a selfie in front of a horrific highway accident in China has been slammed on Weibo, the local version of Twitter.
Local media reported that a "sudden fog" might have been responsible for the 30-car pile-up in the province of Anhui, which left 18 people dead and 21 injured on Wednesday.
Trucks and cars exploded into flames, leaving a scene of devastation at the site, as footage posted to YouTube shows.
But that didn't stop a local reporter from taking selfies in which she smiles, holding up her media pass and making a "peace" sign.
When the pictures of the smiling woman were posted to Weibo, thousands of people responded angrily, according to What's On Weibo, a website that reports on social media trends in China.
"At 7.45 in the morning of the 15th, 30 vehicles collided, leaving 18 people dead and 21 wounded," one netizen wrote.
"Yet this Fuyang radio presenter poses as the scene of the crash with a man in uniform grinning from ear to ear.
"Don't you have a conscience? Don't you have any personal integrity in your work?"
On Wednesday night, the woman at the centre of the controversy uploaded a video online in which she apologises for her actions.
"Hello everybody, I am Ling, and I want to sincerely apologise for what has happened today," she says, according to What's On Weibo.
"I'm sorry. I was wrong."
The radio station where the woman works, Fuyang Traffic Radio, issued an announcement on social media denouncing its employee's behaviour.
The station also confirmed Ling had been fired as a result.
While the majority of netizens had no sympathy for the smiling selfie reporter, at least one observer was prepared to forgive, writing on Weibo: "Give the girl a chance. People make mistakes."
