AT&T apologizes for 9/11 smartphone ad

AT&T learned the hard way that when it comes to product placement, a national tragedy is probably not the best way to go. The telecom giant posted an advertisement on Wednesday of a smartphone taking a photo of light beams commemorating the World Trade Center, with the caption: "Never forget."

Outrage over the tweet quickly spread on Twitter, with several people calling the ad insensitive and a marketing blunder.

AT&T deleted the tweet and posted an apology on the microblog, saying: "We apologize to anyone who felt our post was in poor taste. The image was solely meant to pay respect to those affected by the 9/11 tragedy."

This isn't the first time a major brand has had a Twitter misstep.

During the uprisings in Egypt during the Arab spring, clothing designer Kenneth Cole came under fire for tweeting: "Millions are in uproar in #Cairo. Rumor is they heard our new spring collection is now available online. At the time, Cairo was a trending keyword on Twitter. The company immediately issued an apology.

The food and recipe website Epicurious got into hot water after the Boston marathon bombing when it tweeted,"In honor of Boston and New England, may we suggest: whole-grain cranberry scones!" The company apologized for the tweet soon after.

During the 2012 presidential elections, a staffer at KitchenAid posted an offensive tweet about President Obama's grandmother from the company's official account. The iconic home appliance company issued an apology immediately.