Entertainment
ABC Fires Roseanne Barr after Star Makes a Fool of Herself with Racist Tweet
ABC cancelled “Roseanne” after the star sent a racist tweet about President Obama advisor Valerie Jarrett.
By Lauren Victoria Burke (NNPA Newswire Contributor)
“Roseanne’s Twitter statement is abhorrent, repugnant and inconsistent with our values, and we have decided to cancel her show,” ABC Entertainment president Channing Dungey said in a statement.
In one of the fastest cancellations in TV history in the wake of controversy, ABC Television cancelled the highly-rated and lucrative reboot of Roseanne Barr’s show “Roseanne.”
On May 29, Barr tweeted a series of strange messages regarding George Soros been a Nazi and former Obama White House advisor Valerie Jarrett being connected to the Muslim Brotherhood and apes. Few found her racism amusing.
Disney CEO Bob Iger added on Twitter that, “there was only one thing to do here, and that was the right thing.”
Congressman John Lewis thanked ABC, saying that “There is not any room in our society for racism or bigotry.”
NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson called Roseanne Barr’s comments “appalling” and “reminiscent of horrific time in our history when racism was not only acceptable but promoted by Hollywood.”
Johnson continued: “We applaud ABC for taking a stand against racism by canceling Roseanne today. We commend the network and its president Channing Dungey for placing the values of diversity, inclusion and respect for humanity above ratings.”
Barr’s talent agency, ICM Partners, also dropped her. “What she wrote is antithetical to our core values, both as individuals and as an agency,” the agency said in a statement. “Consequently, we have notified her that we will not represent her. Effective immediately, Roseanne Barr is no longer a client.”
On a previously scheduled and an amazingly well-timed MSNBC town hall on racism hosted Joy Reid and Chris Hayes on the night of May 29, Valerie Jarrett thanked Disney CEO Bob Iger, who called her to apologize.
“I want to mention Bob Iger, who is the CEO of Disney called me before the announcement, he apologized, he said he had zero tolerance for that sort of racist, bigoted comment and he wanted me to know before he made it public that he was cancelling his show and so I appreciate that they did that so swiftly,” Jarrett said.
Also on May 29, longtime Roseanne star Sara Gilbert, who plays her daughter on the show tweeted, “Roseanne’s recent comments about Valerie Jarrett, and so much more, are abhorrent and do not reflect the beliefs of our cast and crew or anyone associated with our show. I am disappointed in her actions to say the least.”
Barr tweeted on May 30, saying, “Don’t feel sorry for me, guys!!-I just want to apologize to the hundreds of people, and wonderful writers (all liberal) and talented actors who lost their jobs on my show due to my stupid tweet.”
At least 200 jobs ended as a result of the show’s cancellation.
Lauren Victoria Burke is an independent journalist, political analyst and contributor to the NNPA Newswire and BlackPressUSA.com. She can be contacted at LBurke007@gmail.com and on Twitter at @LVBurke.
This story was originally published at BlackPressUSA.com.
