Miami Herald in 2007 (Credit: Wikipedia/Totenkopf)

A Miami Herald columnist tweeted that “packed beaches should work nicely to thin the ranks of Trump/DeSantis/Gimenez supporters in #Florida who value money over health.”

The columnist, Fabiola Santiago, has since deleted that tweet and apologized. She wrote,

“THREAD: I deleted the tweet commenting on people at the beach because it didn’t accurately convey my sentiment and I want to apologize for the phrase I used that offended many people. Regardless of political differences, I would never wish any harm on anyone. In fact, my intent was to sound an alarm about prematurely opening up the country and the state. I was trying to open eyes, minds and save lives, not create a controversy about me instead of the issue, which merits discussion.”

The Miami Herald also apologized for her tweet, saying it “crossed the line of acceptable commentary.” Herald executive editor Mindy Gonzalez told Fox News “While columnists, unlike reporters, have broad latitude to express their opinions, the comment by Fabiola Santiago on Twitter crossed the line of acceptable commentary and does not reflect the views of the Miami Herald. She has deleted the tweet and issued an apology. We apologize on behalf of the Miami Herald and will follow up internally.”

Santiago declined to comment further to iMediaEthics. iMediaEthics has written to Gonzalez.