Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama, the senator from Chicago, has accepted the apology of the Rev. Jesse Jackson for crude comments he made about Obama when he thought a television station microphone was not on. Here, Jackson holds up an Obama campaign sign on Super Tuesday primary night at Obama's party on Feb. 5 in Chicago.





CHICAGO (AP) — Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama shrugged off a crude comment aimed at him by the Rev. Jesse Jackson, accepting an apology for a remark Jackson made as he contended that Obama wasn't speaking to issues important to the black community.
Unaware that his microphone was on during a break for a Fox News program last Sunday, Jackson used a slang reference to wanting to cut off Obama's testicles. When he learned Wednesday that the Fox News programThe O'Reilly Factor would air his comments that night, Jackson apologized for "hurtful and wrong" remarks.

The Obama campaign took a measured response to the incident, contending in a statement that Obama has spoken for many years about parental responsibility as well as "jobs, justice and opportunity for all."


VIDEO: Fox News tape of Jackson comments (warning: adult content)
POLITICS BLOG: Newspaper calls explanation "absurd"

"He will continue to speak out about our responsibilities to ourselves and each other, and he of course accepts Rev. Jackson's apology," Obama campaign spokesman Bill Burton said.