Affleck apologises for censoring slave past, PBS investigates

Oscar-winner Ben Affleck regrets his decision to censor his slave-owning ancestors in PBS show Finding Your Roots following the disclosure in hacked Sony emails.

Henry Louis Gates Jr, who hosts the programme, had written to Sony USA CEO Michael Lynton last year 

seeking advice as he was troubled by Affleck’s request to not include the ancestor in the show. The mails were eventually released by WikiLeaks.

Affleck said he was embarrassed by the discovery. “After an exhaustive search of my ancestry for Finding Your Roots it was discovered that one of my distant relatives was an owner of slaves. I didn’t want any television show about my family to include a guy who owned slaves. I was embarrassed. The very thought left a bad taste in my mouth,” Affleck said in a statement.

He said though his decision to hide the fact was a bad choice, he is glad that the issue opened up discussion on slavery.