Georgia Love taken off air by Seven following 'racist' Instagram post

Former Bachelorette star Georgia Love has been pulled from her on-air duties as a TV journalist on Channel Seven and moved to a behind-the-scenes role instead.

The 33-year-old sparked backlash on Monday when she shared footage of a cat in the window of an Asian restaurant and wrote, "Shop attendant or lunch?!"

The video was swiftly deleted and Georgia issued an apology for causing "offence", saying, "I meant absolutely no insinuation about the type of animal nor the type of restaurant, but I see that my post did not come across like that and was offensive."

She continued, "I sincerely apologise for the oversight and offence I have caused. Thank you to those who called me out. This is what we need to make sure we are all accountable and do better.

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"Again, I apologise from the bottom of my heart for the offence caused."

Following a workplace investigation, Seven alerted staff that Georgia had been "counselled" and reassigned to an off-camera role "effective immediately".

"We have addressed this matter internally and disciplinary action has been taken," a Seven spokesperson told Yahoo Lifestyle.

"Seven does not condone this inappropriate conduct and all of our staff have the right to work in a safe, nurturing workplace free from prejudice."

Georgia is reportedly "devastated and deeply sorry for her actions" and issued an apology in an email to her colleagues.

According to The Herald Sun, the apology read, "I want to apologise for an inappropriate post on my personal social media account this week and for an old post which has resurfaced."

"I’m deeply sorry for the hurt that I’ve caused and, in particular, for offence to the Asian community. It certainly wasn’t my intention.

"My posts were inappropriate and offensive. There is no excuse for perpetuating racist stereotypes in any forum.

"I am committed to moving forward, learning and growing in my new role and I hope that in time I can earn your trust back."

It comes after Chadstone shopping centre announced on Friday they had removed Georgia as an ambassador.

A statement read: "We were disappointed by a social media post this week by one of our friends of the Chadstone brand and, as a result, we issued notice to end our contract with Georgia."

"We always support diversity and welcome a range of customers and retailers every day, without prejudice or discrimination, as we work to ensure our centre is a safe and inclusive place for our community to come together."

MasterChef host Melissa Leong was one of the many who called out the former reality star's post, taking to her Instagram Stories to write, "Casual racism from nice people is possibly the most betraying and insidious kind. Not angry, just completely bummed that this video exists and that it isn’t the first joke of this kind made by her.

"Georgia, I really hope your remorse is real and that you grow in the right direction, because this stuff hurts more people, more than you think. We must be allies for each other for a better world for all."

The journalist announced her new role with Seven earlier this year after working as a freelance reporter with Network 10.

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