Dreadful 'weed' slur

Giuliana Rancic, host of E! network's Fashion Police, has been accused of "ignorant slurs" by Zendaya Coleman and of racism by viewers of the programme.

The presenter said she felt as if Coleman, an American singer who had worn her hair in dreadlocks at the Oscars, "smells like patchouli oil, or maybe weed".

Rancic made the comments during the Academy Awards special of the programme on Monday night but faced a severe backlash on Twitter and from the former Disney star herself.

The singer wrote: "I was hit with ignorant slurs and pure disrespect. To say that an 18-year-old woman with locks must smell of patchouli oil or 'weed' is not only a large stereotype but outrageously offensive."