US network ABC cancels Roseanne reboot over racist tweets

ROSEANNE Barr’s sitcom Roseanne has been cancelled despite huge ratings over the comedian’s racist tweets.

A statement by ABC Entertainment, which appointed its first African American president in 2016 with Channing Dungey’s promotion, slammed the comedian’s comments.

“Roseanne’s Twitter statement is abhorrent, repugnant and inconsistent with our values, and we have decided to cancel her show,” Ms Dungey said in a statement.

The axe fell on Roseanne despite the reboot of her sitcom being the highest rated show this season.

It came after comedian Wanda Sykes revealed she has quit Barr’s television show following her racist tweet about a former Obama Administration staffer.

The New York Post reports that Sykes, a consulting producer for Barr’s eponymous show who has also starred in sitcoms including Blackish and Curb Your Enthusiasm, tweeted: “I will not be returning to @RoseanneOnABC”.

Barr also quit social media after firing off a bizarre tweetstorm, falsely claiming Chelsea Clinton is married to billionaire George Soros’ nephew, repeating a false rumour that the billionaire is a Nazi sympathiser and cracking a racist joke about former Obama adviser Valerie Jarrett.

The comedienne started her internet rant by tweeting, “Chelsea Soros Clinton,” followed by a since-deleted tweet that said, “she’s married to soros nephew.”

An hour later, she followed up with, “soros’ goal; the overthrow of us constitutional republic by buying/backing candidates 4 local district attorney races who will ignore US law & favour ‘feelings’ instead — and call everyone who is alarmed by that ‘racist.’”

In another tweet, she called Soros a “Nazi who turned in his fellow Jews 2 be murdered in German concentration camps & stole their wealth.”

Then, in response to someone who questioned what Hillary Clinton is “hiding under her winter clothes at the end of May,” Barr replied, “it's a colostomy jug cuz full of shite.”

Barr also threw in a racist tweet about Jarrett, President Barack Obama’s former senior adviser.

“Muslim brotherhood & planet of the apes had a baby=vj,” she wrote in the tweet, which has been deleted.

Barr’s post about Chelsea Clinton garnered a response from the 38-year-old herself.

“Good morning Roseanne — my given middle name is Victoria. I imagine George Soros’s nephews are lovely people. I’m just not married to one. I am grateful for the important work @OpenSociety does in the world. Have a great day!” Chelsea Clinton wrote.

In response, Barr tweeted, “CORRECTION: CHELSEA CLINTON IS NOT MARRIED TO A SOROS NEPHEW. HER HUSBAND IS THE SON OF A CORRUPT SENATOR, SO SORRY!:”

She then issued a blanket apology in announcing, “I am now leaving Twitter.”

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

This article originally appeared in the New York Post and is republished here with permission.

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