Posted on May 29, 2018

ABC cancels ‘Roseanne’ Hours After Roseanne Barr’s Racist Tweet Targeting Obama Adviser

Sara M Moniuszko, USA TODAY, May 29, 2018

ABC has canceled its hit reboot Roseanne following lead Roseanne Barr’s racist tweets about former Obama White House adviser Valerie Jarrett on Twitter Tuesday.

Channing Dungey, president of ABC Entertainment, issued a statement to USA TODAY denouncing Barr’s comment hours after her apology failed to convince many on Twitter, including the show’s consulting producer Wanda Sykes.

“Roseanne’s Twitter statement is abhorrent, repugnant and inconsistent with our values, and we have decided to cancel her show,” the statement read.

Barr’s comment, which has now been deleted, was sent in response to a tweet that accused Jarrett of helping “hide” misdeeds for the Obama administration.

“muslim brotherhood & planet of the apes had a baby=vj,” Barr wrote, using Jarrett’s initials. Jarrett, 61, is African American and worked for Obama from 2009 to 2017.

Barr apologized for the tweet, describing it as “a bad joke.”

“I apologize to Valerie Jarrett and to all Americans. I am truly sorry for making a bad joke about her politics and her looks,” Barr said. “I should have known better. Forgive me — my joke was in bad taste.”

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Sykes was the first to announce she’d pull out of the show, following Barr’s apology with a short and simple message of disproval.

“I will not be returning to @RoseanneOnABC,” she wrote on Twitter the same day.

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Roseanne co-star Sara Gilbert also denounced Barr’s comments.

“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,” she tweeted. “I am disappointed in her actions to say the least.”

Roseanne‘s Emma Kenney shared her disapproval.

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Writer Danny Zucker also tweeted his disapproval.

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Actor Don Cheadle called out the apparent racism in Barr’s tweets.

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Actress Patricia Arquette also spoke up.

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Some tweeted their support for the actress, including English media personality Katie Hopkins.

“Never apologise @therealroseanne It only encourages the (expletive). Stand Strong,” she wrote with the hashtag #MAGA (Make America Great Again).

Rosie O’Donnell called Barr’s tweets “racist” and “childish” but overall seemed to accept the fellow actress’s apology.

i love roseanne quite a bit