Countess LuAnn: My Daughter's N-Word Use Is Unacceptable

USMagazine, Tuesday, January 11, 2011, 2:51pm (PST)

Victoria de Lesseps may want to brush up on her mom's etiquette book, "Class With the Countess."

The 16-year-old daughter of reality star LuAnn de Lesseps sparked controversy when she was seen dropping the N-word and rolling a cigarette in a YouTube video. LuAnn, who stars on Bravo's "The Real Housewives of New York City," says she is dealing with the matter behind closed doors, but would like to issue a public apology on her daughter's behalf.

"I am the parent of a teenager, and as any parent can attest, teenagers go through periods of doing things that are wrong and not appropriate and that are later regretted," she tells PopEater.

LuAnn, 45, adds that since the incident, her daughter "knows that the behavior she exhibited was unacceptable. I have chosen to deal with this as a private family matter and an opportunity to discuss consequences of our actions."

Fellow "Real Housewives" star Ramona Singer brought extra attention to the incident when she tweeted about the controversial video on Jan. 5. "The countess's daughter rolling a cigarette swearing n-----! Fast forward to 4.12!," she wrote. (The video and tweet were both later removed.)

"I'm not very tech-savvy, and I'm heartbroken that I accidentally retweeted this," Singer, 54, later explained. "I called Luann and Victoria immediately to apologize and tell them to remove the video. Regardless of our catfights on the show, our children are off-limits."

RELATED ON WONDERWALL & MSN:

Read our interview with Kim Z from 'Atlanta'

Find out what Bethenny's favorite items are

Learn all about 'Real Housewives of New York'

RELATED ON USMAGAZINE.COM:

PHOTOS: Stars who suffered after humiliating scandals

VIDEO: LuAnn struggles to get her singing career off the ground

PHOTOS: The "Real Housewives of New York City"'s most dramatic moments