ABC axes Roseanne after racist tweet
May 30, 2018
Disney-owned US TV network ABC has cancelled its recently resurrected sitcom Roseanne with immediate effect after its star, comedian Roseanne Barr, posted a racist tweet likening an African-American former President Obama aide to an ape.
In a statement, ABC said: “Roseanne’s Twitter statement is abhorrent, repugnant and inconsistent with our values and we have decided to cancel her show.”
Barr’s tweet said Valerie Jarrett was the child of the Muslim Brotherhood and the Planet of the Apes film. Vocal Trump-supporter Barr has since deleted the tweet and issued an apology.
The reboot of the hit 90s sitcom had been a successful ratings winner and is the most popular US TV show of 2018 so far, with an average of 18 million viewers per episode.