The politics of free expression
Roseanne Barr has come full circle. On Tuesday, she unleashed a racist screed on Twitter, was fired by ABC, and reborn a conservative darling. Many of those clamoring on social media weren’t alive in 1990 to watch Barr knock respectability and decency out of the ballpark — literally.
Barr sent a tweet linking Chelsea Clinton to liberal donor George Soros and a racially charged tweet saying Valerie Jarrett, who is African-American and born in Iran, is like the “muslim brotherhood & planet of the apes had a baby.” Jarrett was an aide to former President Barack Obama.
The actress/comedian was enjoying an upswing in her career with a reboot of the popular sitcom that bears her name. After the tweet, ABC swiftly cancelled the show. Roseanne originally aired from 1988 until 1997, telling the story of the working-class Conner family in Illinois. It was relaunched by ABC in March with much of its original cast, including John Goodman, Laurie Metcalf and Sara Gilbert, in addition to Barr.
Originally, Roseanne episodes had a more liberal bend and featured storylines about gay people, racism and sexism. The reboot included storylines about the Roseanne character being a Trump voter, which apparently mirrored Barr’s real-life support of the president.
Barr’s comments were abhorrent, repugnant and I appreciate the fact ABC took action. But it is interesting what network television — and the public, in general — will tolerate or not. After Roseanne was canceled, the social media debate quickly turned to Joy Behar of The View not being held to the same standard. Some swift action was needed there, but none occurred.
Behar suggested on her show that Vice President Mike Pence had mental health issues because he has spoken openly about talking to God. He was ridiculed and mocked. People are very tolerant of bashing Christians whose beliefs aren’t in keeping with their own, but not other faiths. I was just as offended, as a Christian, by Behar’s remarks as I was Barr’s. And quite frankly, the daily barrage of offensive tweets from President Donald Trump is as bad or worse than anything those two have spewed.
How is it decided who is punished and censored? Is it ideology? Ratings? Position? What measuring stick is applied? Is it fair?
Jim Patterson, a long-time member of the El Dorado News-Times staff who is now a newspaper editor in Colorado, made this observation and I tend to agree: “Actually, I’m becoming pretty concerned about the future of freedom of expression in this nation. I’ve despised Roseanne Barr’s show since its first incarnation, and I equally loathe ‘The View.’ I think studio execs would be wise to let the viewing audience decide what’s acceptable and what isn’t.”
Before last week’s incident, Barr had distinguished herself by delivering a horrible rendition of the National Anthem before a nationally televised baseball game. On July 25, 1990, she made a mockery of the anthem, spit and grabbed her crotch. She even exchanged barbs afterwards with President George H.W. Bush who expressed his distaste of her disrespectful behavior.
And she kept her job. Contrast that with the reaction of outrage people have today for NFL players who take a knee in protest during the National Anthem. They are taking a knee. She spit and grabbed her crotch.
Barr was once a conservative pariah for butchering the National Anthem and now she’s in favor among the same group — supporting Trump, speaking her mind and getting canned — for being the anti-Joy Behar icon.
Politics makes strange bedfellows.