Roseanne Barr is facing backlash after recent comments made about Jewish people and the Holocaust.
The 70-year-old actor and comedian, who is Jewish, stirred controversy with her remarks while trying to make a point about political propaganda, suggesting that there are established mandates defining an absolute truth during an appearance on "This Past Weekend" podcast.
During the interview, Barr cited Joe Biden's presidency as an instance where questioning the "truth" could lead to being banned from platforms such as YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and others.
"There's such a thing as the truth and facts, and we have to stick to it," Barr said, to which host Theo Von replied: "It's scary," according to the Independent.
"And that is the truth,” Barr continued. "And nobody died in the Holocaust, either. That's the truth. It should happen. Six million Jews should die right now because they cause all the problems in the world. But it never happened."
The podcast was released June 14, but Barr's remarks gained traction this week, sparking outrage. Among her critics was Jonathan Greenblatt, the CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, a Jewish organization specializing in civil rights law.
"Sarcasm or not, Roseanne Barr's comments about Jews and the Holocaust are reprehensible and irresponsible. This isn't funny," Greenblatt wrote in a statement, according to the Independent.
"And shame on Theo Von for letting it go unchallenged and instead diving into conspiracy theories about Jews and Hollywood."
Von defended his podcast guest by sharing a clip of their conversation on Twitter, stating that her comments were not meant to be taken literally.
"Here is the full clip of Roseanne Barr obviously using sarcasm and satire," Von wrote. "She is a mensch [a Yiddish term for a person of integrity and morality] and one of the funniest people I've ever met."
Earlier this week, John Goodman spoke out about his support for Barr, saying that he stood by her after her firing from the "Roseanne reboot" for a tweet in which she compared Valerie Jarrett, a Black aide to former President Barack Obama, to an ape.
"Yeah, I felt bad for her," Goodman told Variety. "I just feel terrible about the whole thing. You know, we had a great time. And I love her. She's just her own person."
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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