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In a stunning — and stunningly quick — move, ABC canceled “Roseanne” Tuesday, in the wake of racist tweets posted earlier in the day by its star, Roseanne Barr.
It’s about time someone did something about offensive behavior other than tweet a few complaints and disapprovals and move on.
“Roseanne’s Twitter statement is abhorrent, repugnant and inconsistent with our values, and we have decided to cancel her show,” Channing Dungey, ABC’s entertainment president, said in a statement.
This wasn’t just some token move made by the network. “Roseanne,” Barr’s reboot of her popular sitcom, returned to triumphant ratings this year, 19 years after it originally aired.
It ended the season as the No. 1 show on the network.
Barr’s character, like the star, is a strong supporter of President Donald Trump. She’s used Twitter in the past to promote conspiracy theories. On Tuesday, she tweeted of Valerie Jarrett, one of former President Barack Obama’s advisers, “muslim brotherhood & planet of the apes had a baby = vj.”
Barr tweeted later that it was a joke, and then that, “ISLAM is not a RACE, lefties. Islam includes EVERY RACE of people.”
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Later, she apologized, after deleting the original post about Jarrett. “I apologize to Valerie Jarrett and to all Americans. I am truly sorry for making a bad joke about her politics and her looks. I should have known better. Forgive me — my joke was in bad taste.”
Wanda Sykes, the comedian who worked as a consulting producer on the show, announced on Twitter Tuesday morning she wasn’t returning to the show.
Then ABC canceled it.
A couple of quick notes: Yes, Barr has every right to say whatever offensive thing she wants to say. The First Amendment doesn’t just protect the things we want to hear.
And yes, ABC has every right to fire her. It’s a private company that can and should hold its employees to certain standards — as, no doubt, yours and mine do. That’s why, as some have taken to social media to question, ABC doesn’t cancel “The View” or (insert network here, your least-favorite show there). It’s not one-size-fits-all.
Also, and this is important: Who can defend her original tweet? Who wants to fight that battle? Something people seem to forget is that you can support Trump without belittling and attacking those who don’t. (And vice versa.) We are so divided that there’s no longer room for mere disagreement. Instead we have to traffic in public humiliation.
Well, look who got humiliated here.
There’s no question that since Trump has taken office, certain people have felt emboldened to more comfortably express racist and bigoted views. Too often, we see this, we are upset by it, we tweet a few words of disgust and unhappiness and get back to trying to figure out why “Solo: A Star Wars Story” wasn’t a monster hit at the box office or complaining about the weather.
The network is a business, so this probably wasn’t solely a do-the-right-thing move. Likely the show’s advertisers expressed concern, or maybe some fled the show this morning. The reboot had been controversial, thanks to Barr’s earlier tweets and comments, so ABC wasn’t allergic to some publicity-generating news.
But like every business, it’s allergic to losing money. If advertisers were worried, that’s the one bridge too far.
(Speaking of money, now the rest of the cast and crew of “Roseanne” are out of jobs. This doesn’t just affect the big-name, big-salary stars, but also the crew members who see the show not as a political vehicle but as how they earn their living. Barr’s idiocy costs them, plenty.)
Ultimately, though, who cares why the network canceled “Roseanne”? At least it took concrete action to punish racist behavior. At least it didn’t moan and whine a little and sweep it under the rug, waiting for the next round of good news from the ratings reports.
No, ABC took action. The network, television and the rest of us are better for it.
Reach Goodykoontz at bill.goodykoontz@arizonarepublic.com. Facebook: facebook.com/GoodyOnFilm. Twitter: @goodyk.
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