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ABC cancels Roseanne reboot after star's racist tweet

Roseanne Barr apologizes after a Twitter rant, but the damage is done.

Gordon Gottsegen CNET contributor
Gordon Gottsegen is a tech writer who has experience working at publications like Wired. He loves testing out new gadgets and complaining about them. He is the ghost of all failed Kickstarters.
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Abrar Al-Heeti Technology Reporter
Abrar Al-Heeti is a technology reporter for CNET, with an interest in phones, streaming, internet trends, entertainment, pop culture and digital accessibility. She's also worked for CNET's video, culture and news teams. She graduated with bachelor's and master's degrees in journalism from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Though Illinois is home, she now loves San Francisco -- steep inclines and all.
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2018 Winter TCA Tour - Day 5

ABC's Roseanne stars Roseanne Barr and John Goodman.

 Frederick M. Brown / Getty Images

Twitter can influence global politics and fuel revolutions, and it can also get your TV show canceled.

Sitcom star Roseanne Barr on Tuesday morning posted a racist tweet calling a former Obama aide the baby of Planet of the Apes and the Muslim Brotherhood. 

The tweet was later deleted and Barr apologized, but the damage was already done. Consulting producer Wanda Sykes said she was quitting the Roseanne show and Barr said she was quitting Twitter. Now, ABC has confirmed it's canceling the Roseanne show.

In a statement, ABC said Barr's tweet "is abhorrent, repugnant and inconsistent with our values," leading to the cancellation of the show.

The Roseanne reboot premiered in March, 21 years after the original series ended. 

Viacom also said it's pulling Roseanne reruns from its cable networks Paramount Network, TV Land and CMT as of Wednesday, a representative confirmed to CNET. The page for the sitcom on Paramount Network's website currently shows an error message.

In addition, Hulu confirmed it's removing the show from its site. 

ICM Partners, which represents Barr, didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

First published May 29, 12:07 p.m. PT.
Update, 2:41 p.m. PT: Adds information about reruns being pulled.
Update, 3:58 p.m. PT: Adds that Hulu pulled Roseanne.