American network ABC is apologising for a segment of Jimmy Kimmel Live in which a child joked about killing Chinese people to help erase the US debt.
The boy's unscripted comment came during a comedy bit in which youngsters commented on news events.
The skit, aimed at poking fun at childish politicians, aired last week on Kimmel's late-night talk show.
ABC's apology came in response to a complaint from a group called 80-20, which identifies itself as a pan-Asian-American political organisation.
In an October 25 letter to the group, ABC said it would never purposefully do anything to upset the Chinese, Asian or other communities.