Well, that was fast.
Rosanne Barr tweeted some super racist and Islamaphobic crap about Valerie Jarrett (former Obama adviser,) and hours later, her ABC series reboot is cancelled. If only cancelling her most famous fan and inspiration, Trumpy Bear, was so quick and easy.
April Ryan had some interesting analysis about ABC dropping Season 2 of the yugely successful reboot so quickly...Roseanne's tweets were no surprise. She's made her vile opinions known for years. Ryan goes back as far as when she grabbed her crotch after singing the National Anthem to open a baseball game. (One ponders what the current "president" thinks of that...not exactly patriotic, or "America First." How does it compare, say, to...oh, I don't know...a Black NFL player kneeling for the National Anthem before a football game? But I digress...) And once Twitter became a Thing, and Roseanne turned to the Dark Side of politics, Ryan knows Roseanne let her racist and anti-semitic colors fly.
"She's made negative statements about African-Americans, saying we look like 'Planet of the Apes.' She also made negative comments about our Jewish brothers and sisters and for all Americans, our patriots."
April Ryan believes that this is a big move for ABC, though, and an improvement in the way corporate America deals with racists. She does relay the fear of a friend of hers...that while no network or media outlet will touch Roseanne for the moment, will someone, eventually, pick her up?
"That's a question. If they do, it sends a resounding message to that base. Right now she's a hot potato. But if someone picks this show up, it sends a message to us what happened with ABC means nothing."
It's a very good question, and one for which we should keep our eyes open, waiting for an answer to make itself known.
Jennifer Pozner, media critic and media literacy educator, is not even willing to give ABC that much credit to begin with.
How much leeway are we willing to give artists who are racists, islamaphobes, anti-semites, sexists, rapists - if they are talented and make us money? It is the age old question. Where will corporations draw the line regarding whom they'll attach themselves to in order to make money? Are ethics and profits ever compatible? I'm pretty sure a few companies manage it...
