State Department's Spring Break Attractiveness Tweet Draws Ire

A State Department spring break tweet posted Wednesday was meant to warn travelers about overseas scams, but touched a nerve when it joked about physical attractiveness.

According to The New York Times, the State Department issued what appeared to be routine warnings about traveling overseas in a series of Twitter messages starting Monday.

Tempted to buy cheap pirated goods overseas? Don’t. You could be prosecuted in the U.S. #springbreakingbadly

— Travel - State Dept (@TravelGov) March 28, 2016

If someone asks you to take a package overseas, dont do it. Foreign jail is not where you want to spend spring break. #springbreakingbadly

— Travel - State Dept (@TravelGov) March 29, 2016

But then, in a tweet posted Wednesday that has since been deleted, the department tried to get creative in a message about robbery.

"Not a '10' in the US? Then not a 10 overseas. Beware of being lured into buying expensive drinks or worse — being robbed. #springbreakingbadly," the Bureau of Consular Affairs posted on Twitter from its State Department travel handle, @TravelGov.

"This did not go over well," wrote Cosmopolitan. "Some people said the tweet was offensive, sexist, and 'negging' in the classic pickup-artist style, but others just said people need to lighten up."

The state department eventually apologized, but not before Twitter piled on.

Some have been offended by our earlier tweet and we apologize that it came off negatively 1/2

— Travel - State Dept (@TravelGov) March 30, 2016

If you're not a “10” at home, you won't be a “10” when you join ISIS. This message brought to you by America.

— Paul Ford (@ftrain) March 31, 2016

the dumbest thing about that @TravelGov tweet was that it assumed women don't get hit on unless they are perfect 10s. a man defo wrote that

— didi (@priya_ebooks) March 30, 2016

Tell me I'm pretty, @TravelGov

— Nicole Cliffe (@Nicole_Cliffe) March 30, 2016

The @TravelGov tweets are good. It's you who is bad.

— Slade Sohmer (@Slade) March 30, 2016

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