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Foxtel CEO Patrick Delany has begun a series of meetings with Jewish leaders to "unreservedly apologise" after an image of him performing a Nazi salute came to light.
On Sunday media outlet Crikey published the photograph taken on a "closed set" a decade ago when he was Fox Sports CEO.
It shows him with his right arm raised outstretched above his head in a salute and two fingers of the other hand placed above his top lip to imitate Adolf Hitler's moustache.
Mr Delany on Monday said the photo of him making an "inappropriate salute" was done in a circumstance where he was likening it to the gesture some Western Sydney Wanderers fans were using 10 years ago.
Foxtel CEO Patrick Delany demonstrating a Nazi salute on a Fox Sports set in mid-2010s. (Crikey)
"Regardless of the context, the fact I demonstrated this offensive salute was wrong and I unreservedly apologise," he said.
"I am very sorry for my actions and sincerely apologise to people who have been hurt or offended, especially members of the Jewish community.
"The picture is completely inconsistent with my values and beliefs, and family connections."
'Full and unreserved apology'
The President of the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies David Ossip told the ABC he met with the Foxtel Group boss this afternoon and he made a "full and unreserved apology to the Jewish community for performing a Nazi salute".
"He made it clear that regardless of the context in which he performed the salute, he understood the offence and hurt that the gesture causes; not only Jewish Australians but the tens of thousands of Australians whose family members were killed or injured fighting the Nazis during World War II," he said.
"We accept Patrick's apology and recognise not only his but Lachlan Murdoch's strong and unequivocal repudiation of anti-Semitism in the past 10 months."
Mr Ossip said Mr Delany had agreed to continue to speak out strongly against anti-Semitism and other forms of hate.
"He and his leadership team will be visiting the Sydney Jewish Museum to remind themselves about where unbridled hatred ultimately leads," he told the ABC.
"This is a moment which reinforces the need for all of us to educate our next generation about the atrocities perpetrated in service of the Nazi ideology , and about the needs to respect each and every one of us, regardless of our backgrounds."
It's expected that Mr Delany will meet with Alex Ryvchin in a matter of days. (AAP: Dean Lewis)
The ABC understands Mr Delany had also made contact with the Executive Council of Australian Jewry over the weekend and would meet with its head Alex Ryvchin in the coming days.
But Mr Ossip said he believed the apology was sincere and would be accepted more broadly by the community.
"He is genuinely contrite and committed to work with us to combat the evils of anti-Semitism. He's committed to using this episode as a learning exercise and our hope is that this incident serves as a valuable lesson for the community as a whole."
'I acknowledge the seriousness of my actions'
In his email to staff, Mr Delany stressed he was a "signatory to the Say No to Anti-Semitism letter of late 2023" and said he condemns anti-Semitism in any form.
"Racism in all its forms is not acceptable and I acknowledge the seriousness of my actions."
The Western Sydney Wanderers club has faced controversy in recent years over the Nazi salute issue, with one supporter banned by Football Australia from attending matches for two years after he was filmed on TV performing what appeared to be a fascist or Nazi salute.
The ABC has reached out to the club for comment about the latest development.