Australian Big Brother Makers Apologize to Mexico  6/23/07

Producers of reality TV show Big Brother in Australia have issued an apology to the Mexican government for allowing contestants to deface the country's flag.

Last week (ends15Jun07), viewers saw the show's participants throwing goo-filled balloons at an incorrectly-colored Mexican flag as part of theme night on the show - an action the Latin American country's ruling body deemed "offensive".

The Mexican Embassy expressed its disgust at the incident aired as part of the show's weekly themed Friday Night Live segment, and demanded the Australian Communications and Media Authority and TV company Endemol Southern Star "take adequate measures to avoid this type of incident in the future".

Endemol Southern Star has insisted its actions were not meant to cause offence to any person, country, or institution.

The company's apology reads, "Friday Night Live is themed each week and June 19's Mexican Night was designed as a tribute to Mexico and its vibrant cultural heritage," with the company assuring the Mexican government "something like this would never happen again."

The flag used by the program's makers displayed the Mexican national symbol - an eagle devouring a snake on top of a cactus - in the middle but had the green, white and red bands of color in the wrong order.