The reboot of the 90's sitcom Roseanne was canceled on Tuesday, May 29 following a racist tweet by the show's co-creator and namesake, Roseanne Barr. The since-deleted tweet compared former President Obama's aide Valerie Jarrett to the offspring of Planet of the Apes and the Muslim Brotherhood. The off-color tweet was described as "abhorrent" by the president of ABC Entertainment, the network that has aired Roseanne since its start in 1988. In a decision that some people, including myself, find rash, the network canceled the popular show that had garnered incredible ratings.
My brother and I started watching Roseanne at the beginning of the year and have reached season 7 of the show's original 9 season run. We are both looking forward to watching the new season when we finish the original series. We were disappointed to hear that the show was canceled after being renewed for a second season. While I in no way condone the tweet that got Roseanne Barr’s show canceled, I do believe that ABC made a rash decision in canceling the show.
Roseanne has always been a comedian and it is an occupational hazard to sometimes cross the line. She later took to Twitter to apologize for the tweet and explain that it was a bad attempt at a joke. It is my opinion that she has done all she can by apologizing to everyone involved, including her co-workers who lost their jobs because of ABCs decision to cancel the show. ABC's attempt to do damage control and be politically correct led to the unemployment of hundreds of people. They weren’t just punishing Roseanne, but also everyone else involved with her show. They could’ve handled the situation better. In fact, they could have just done nothing, which has happened before in similar cases.
President Trump pointed out a double-standard by tweeting that ABC’s Bob Iger apologized to Valerie Jarrett, the target of Barr’s tweet, but never apologized to him for the various “horrible” statements made about him on the network. Fans came to Roseanne’s aid, giving examples of other people on TV who made insensitive remarks yet didn’t face the same backlash as Barr. Bill Maher has compared President Trump to a gorilla, yet it was brushed off as a harmless joke. Jimmy Kimmel made a racist comment about the First Lady, but he kept his show. Roseanne wasn’t the only woman on TV to insult a person in power. Joy Behar from The View called Vice President Pence mentally ill for being a Christian and believing that God talks to him.
Roseanne denies being a racist and is upset by how one tweet is unraveling years of her fighting for civil rights. Michael Fishman, who played her son on the original series, said “You fought, built, and designed Roseanne for inclusiveness. That is why yesterday was so out of character with the last 30 years.” He recognized that Roseanne made a mistake in a regrettable moment that didn’t align with what she stands for. Support from fans led Roseanne to say “you guys make me feel like fighting back. I will examine all of my options carefully and get back to U.” Only time will tell if Roseanne Barr will get her show back. If nothing else, this situation has taught us the importance of thinking before we speak (or Tweet) and how much our actions can affect others. What Roseanne said is not defendable, but it is forgivable.
