Roseanne Barr is back in the hot seat for the controversial comments she made about the Jewish Holocaust in a podcast interview with Theo Von.
Von and Barr’s son Jake Pentland defended the actress’ comments as sarcasm and satire, but the joke did not land for many.
This is not the first time Barr’s son has come to his mother’s defense regarding her controversial jokes.
Roseanne Barr is a comedian and actress known for speaking her mind, no matter how controversial. She was also loved for her time on the well-known sitcom “Roseanne.”
Barr is not a stranger to going viral for her controversial jokes, and this time, she is back on the hot seat after making what was deemed inappropriate comments in a recent interview with host Theo Von on his podcast “This Past Weekend.”
A clip from the podcast with Von went viral on social media. It showed Barr making offensive remarks about the Jewish community, which even caught the attention of the CEO of the Anti-Defamation, Jonathan Greenblatt.
Von and Barr’s son have defended the comedian saying the video clip was part of a bigger conversation and that Barr went on a long sarcastic rant.
What Is Roseanne Barr Being Criticized For?
The clip that went viral started as a conversation about online censorship. Barr claimed that social media silenced anyone who questioned the accuracy of any information.
She spoke about the US 2020 elections and alluded that anyone who questioned their legitimacy was censored on social media. Then she went on to speak about how users are forced to believe a “proven truth.”
Roseanne Barr on Theo Von’s podcast “This Past Weekend.”
Barr then started to get into her rant, stating that people were afraid of the facts and only relied on the truth the media presented. This was when she spiraled into the rant about the Jewish Holocaust, trying to make a point about those that deny the truth.
The comedian shocked viewers and said, “Nobody died in the Holocaust, either. That is 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.”
In response to the backlash Barr received for her comments, Von later came to her defense and tweeted, ‘This Roseanne Barr clip was sarcasm, folks. A clip was taken out of a long sarcastic rant she had during our chat.”
Von emphasized that the clip was complete satire. “She is a mensch and one of the funniest people I’ve ever met,” he reiterated.
Meanwhile, Barr’s son, Jake Pentland, also came to her defense, saying, “We are embarrassed that people are stupid enough not to recognize Roseanne is being sarcastic.”
Despite the justification of the sarcasm behind Barr’s remarks, Greenblatt did not find the joke funny. The CEO commented on the ongoing conversation and said, “Sarcasm or not, Roseanne Barr’s comments about Jews and the Holocaust are reprehensible and irresponsible. This isn’t funny.”
Other online users stood by Barr, asking people to stop bullying her and saying that she was an inspiration to many young girls. While others thought her comments were “unbelievable.”
Netizens worried about the information that Barr was putting out there and the damage it would cause if people believed everything she said.
However, even Barr did not think anything she said was wrong. While her video went viral, she took it to Instagram and said this was the “dumbest” thing anyone could hold against her. She also announced that she would speak more on the issue on her podcast on Thursday.
The Last Time Jake Pentland Defended His Mother’s Controversial Comments
This was not the first time Pentland had come to his mother’s defense. When Barr was criticized for her racist tweet about Valerie Jarrett, the senior secretary to former president Barack Obama in 2018, he posted a few videos in Barr’s defense.
The offensive tweet cost Barr her show, “Roseanne.” ABC and its sister company Disney announced the show’s cancellation within a few hours of the tweet’s publication.
Barr defended herself, stating that she did not know Jarrett was a black woman, but apologized for what she said. Meanwhile, her son was not happy with how things went down.
Pentland did not agree with ABC’s decision to cancel his mother’s show. He even demanded that Barr’s castmates apologize to the actress for calling her racist.
Barr might not be seen much on tel
evision, but she is very active on social media and has a podcast. Even though she lost her sitcom, she released the comedy special, “Roseanne Barr: Cancel This!” and called it the “most offensive” stand-up show ever.
Since the 2018 meltdown, Barr admitted that she was scared to get back on stage, but she found that she still had an audience for her conspiracy theories.
At one point, she was scared even to leave her house, but Barr felt fortunate to still have fans and people in the industry who gave her the platform to be a comedian.
