NEW YORK (AP) — The use of emojis has become universal — but their look hasn’t.
No matter whether it’s a wink, high-five or an eye-roll in an email or text message, the images used as electronic shorthand for emotions usually have a white skin tone or a cartoonish looking yellow.
That, says Apple, will change with the launch of its latest update to its mobile operating system. Users will get to choose among different skin tones. And it doesn’t stop with race.
Apple says there will also be new depiction’s of families that will include those with two moms or two dads.
Apple hasn’t said when the new, more diverse, emojis will be available. But it says it has been working with a nonprofit group that has called for a wider range of skin colors for emojis — so they better reflect the way people look in different parts of the world.
Story © 2015 Associated Press – Images © 2015 Associated Press