Washington: U.S. President Donald Trump waded further into television controversies on Friday, calling for comedian Samantha Bee to be fired after she made a vulgar comment about his daughter and White House adviser Ivanka Trump on her program.
His comments came days after Walt Disney Co's ABC network canceled the popular U.S. television comedy "Roseanne" after its star Roseanne Barr tweeted a racist remark comparing a former top Obama administration official to an ape.
On Wednesday, Bee called Ivanka Trump a crude reference for the female anatomy on her show "Full Frontal" while discussing the president's controversial immigration policies.
Bee apologised on Thursday. The TBS cable network, which airs the program, also issued an apology.
"I would like to sincerely apologise to Ivanka Trump and to my viewers for using an expletive on my show to describe her last night. It was inappropriate and inexcusable. I crossed a line, and I deeply regret it," Bee said on Twitter.
Fortune magazine reported that two companies, Autotrader and State Farm, have pulled their commercials from the show.
"Why aren't they firing no talent Samantha Bee for the horrible language used on her low ratings show? A total double standard but that's O.K., we are Winning, and will be doing so for a long time to come!" Trump, a former reality television star, tweeted on Friday morning.
After "Roseanne" was canceled on Tuesday, the White House said Trump would not defend Barr's comments but pointed to alleged media bias against the show, which portrays a working-class American family.
The program, which originally aired from 1988 to 1997, has drawn praise from Trump since it was brought back. Its reboot featured Barr portraying a Trump voter facing off against her sister, an ardent opponent of the president, and tackled other issues reflecting America's political divide.
TBS is owned by Time Warner Inc, which is seeking to merge with AT&T Inc in a move opposed by the Trump administration.
After "Roseanne" was canceled, Trump criticised ABC and Bob Iger, chief executive officer of Disney, in a pair of tweets that did not directly address the content of Barr's comments. Disney is seeking to merge with Twenty-First Century Fox Inc. Fox has also drawn interest from Comcast Corp.
In another move echoing his past television life, Trump this week said he might pardon or commute the sentences of former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich and lifestyle maven Martha Stewart. Stewart was the host of a spinoff of “The Apprentice” in 2005, and Blagojevich appeared as a contestant on “Celebrity Apprentice” before he began his sentence.
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