Roseanne canceled; ABC moves on after Roseanne Barr comments
In a statement this morning, network programming head Channing Dungey had the following to say on the subject of ending the show following a racist remark the star / executive producer made about a former President Obama senior adviser:
“Roseanne’s Twitter statement is abhorrent, repugnant and inconsistent with our values, and we have decided to cancel her show.”
ABC decided to make a big statement here in showing that they will not financially support performers who make racist statements on social media — and they’re doing this knowing full well that the move will probably hurt them financially. That’s why we consider it to be such a big deal. There will probably be protests and so much more from Roseanne’s fans, but in the end, it doesn’t matter. This is not a one-time offense for Barr on social media and there was a concern about this happening going into the show. If anything, there was criticism about the show existing in the first place.
Do we feel for some of the cast and crew employed on the show along with some of the crew members who are losing their jobs because of this? Absolutely, since all they were trying to do is work in a competitive industry. Ultimately, though, Roseanne has to take the blame for her actions here — one easily avoidable comment that she made out of hate has led to a watershed moment at ABC and we don’t just see this cast and crew assembling somewhere else. It is not as though much of this cast or staff shares some of the same political leanings as Roseanne. No other major network is going to want to touch this, and smaller ones wouldn’t be able to afford it.
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