Two 'Big Brother' contestants lose their jobs over racist language

Two contestants on the current season of CBS' "Big Brother" have been let go from their jobs following their use of racist and homophobic language on the show's live Internet feed.

Aaryn Gries, 22, has been dropped from her modeling contract with Zephyr Talent of Austin, Texas, which announced the news on its Facebook page Wednesday: "Any views or opinions expressed in personal commentary by Aaryn, either on any live feed from the House or during the broadcast, are hers alone and do not represent the views or opinions of Zephyr Talent. Upon much consideration, we have decided to release Aaryn from her contract."

Additionally, GinaMarieZimmerman, 32, lost her job as a coordinator for the New Jersey-based beauty-pageant company East Coast USA Pageant. "We have never known this side of [GinaMarie]," chief executive Lauren Handler said in a statement Wednesday, "or have ever witnessed such acts of racism in the past. We are actually thankful that this show let us see [her] for who she truly is as we would never want her to be a role model to our future contestants."

She added, "We are unable to contact her at this time but when she returns from the 'Big Brother' house we will be terminating her employment for her unforgivable behavior."

CBS had earlier said in a statement, "At times, the houseguests reveal prejudices and other beliefs that we do not condone. We certainly find the statements made by several of the houseguests on the live Internet feed to be offensive. . . . [They] do not represent the views or opinions of CBS or the producers of the program."