Former Obama adviser Valerie Jarrett said she finds the Roseanne cancellation as a “teaching moment.” She also said that Bob Iger, the CEO of Disney, had called to inform her of the news of the show’s cancellation Despite solid ratings, the television reboot of the show was abruptly cancelled after Roseanne Barr sent a racist tweet directed at Jarrett (via NBC News):
Valerie Jarrett reacts to Roseanne Barr tweet: "I'm fine. I'm worried about all the people out there who don't have a circle of friends and followers who come right to their defense." pic.twitter.com/Ct8Bad40HI
— Axios (@axios) May 29, 2018
Valerie Jarrett, former adviser to President Barack Obama, responded to actress Roseanne Barr’s comment referring to her as an “ape” on Tuesday, saying ABC made the right decision in canceling its hit sitcom starring the actress.
"First of all, I think we have to turn it into a teaching moment. I’m fine. I’m worried about all the people out there who don’t have a circle of friends and followers coming to their defense,” Jarrett said during a town hall on MSNBC called “Everyday Racism in America.”
When asked if ABC made the right call in canceling the sitcom “Roseanne,” Jarrett said that the network did and that Bob Iger, the chief executive officer of Disney, had called her before the announcement.
Iger apologized, Jarrett said, adding that he told her there would be zero tolerance for those types of comments.
Prior to the show’s cancellation, the show lost two key players on their production team: head writer Wanda Sykes quit and executive producer, writer, and co-show runner Whitney Cummings also announced that she would be leaving the show. It had been renewed for another season.
Barr has since apologized for the tweet, saying it was a bad joke.
She had tweeted, “Muslim brotherhood & planet of the apes had a baby=vj."