# Cancel Culture: Toxic Game or Justified Treatment?

- Link: https://chatterblast.com/blog/cancel-culture-toxic-game-or-justified-treatment/
- Published: 2020-08-21T18:36:30-04:00
- Author: chatterblastteam

In 2020 specifically, public figures in the spotlight have been getting canceled
left and right. As someone who enjoys being in the loop about celebrity news, there
was a point where everyday I would log onto **Twitter** to find someone new being“
canceled.” People were being canceled so often that I would occasionally wake up
and try to guess who might have been canceled since I had last logged on. 

[Cancel culture](https://www.dictionary.com/e/pop-culture/cancel-culture/) refers
to the popular practice of withdrawing support for (_canceling_) public figures 
and companies after they have done or said something considered objectionable or
offensive. 

## **Now trending: #CancelEllen**

As a recent examples of cancel culture, we have **Ellen DeGeneres**. If you haven’t
seen the news about Ellen, you might want to make sure that your WiFi is working
properly. Ellen’s name has been dragged through the mud 100 times over. While it
has not been any kind of secret, people are canceling [Ellen](https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/krystieyandoli/ellen-employees-allege-toxic-workplace-culture)
for the treatment of her team members and crew on the show. 

Back in March, **Kevin Porter** tweeted asking people to send through their most
insane stories about Ellen as she is always trying to “spread kindness.”

> Right now we all need a little kindness. You know, like Ellen Degeneres always
> talks about! 😊❤️
> She’s also notoriously one of the meanest people alive
> Respond to this with the most insane stories you’ve heard about Ellen being mean&
> I’ll match every one w/ $2 to [@LAFoodBank](https://twitter.com/LAFoodBank?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)
> — Kevin T. Porter (@KevinTPorter) [March 20, 2020](https://twitter.com/KevinTPorter/status/1241049881688412160?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)

While some of the responses have to be taken with a grain of salt, other responses
gave us a whole new light of what happens behind the scenes of her show. 

> Working for her, I was instructed that I can’t look her in the eye and never ever
> say hi to her first. “But don’t worry, she definitely won’t be saying hi to you
> in the first place.” She creates the most toxic environment for her staff.
> — Maggie Klaus 🏄‍♀️ (@Maggie_Klaus) [March 23, 2020](https://twitter.com/Maggie_Klaus/status/1242186705970421760?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)

You also might be wondering how other [celebrities](https://www.glamour.com/story/all-the-celebrities-who-are-standing-by-ellen-degeneres)
have reacted to this news. As we know, Ellen hosts some of the most popular stars
all of the time on her show. Is she treating them just as poorly? Apparently not.
Big stars have been quick to come to Ellen’s defense, saying they have received 
nothing but kindness and great experiences as a guest on the show. 

**Katy Perry** was one of many celebrities to shed a positive light on Ellen, tweeting:

> 1/2 I know I can’t speak for anyone else’s experience besides my own but I want
> to acknowledge that I have only ever had positive takeaways from my time with 
> Ellen & on the @theellenshow. I think we all have witnessed the light & continual
> fight for equality that she has brought
> — KATY PERRY (@katyperry) [August 4, 2020](https://twitter.com/katyperry/status/1290548870137565193?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)

> 2/2 to the world through her platform for decades. Sending you love & a hug, friend@
> TheEllenShow ♥️
> — KATY PERRY (@katyperry) [August 4, 2020](https://twitter.com/katyperry/status/1290549365082173441?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)

This celebrity support for Ellen has only made people angrier about the situation.
These stars are missing the point that _obviously_ they are going to be treated 
well, but that top-notch treatment comes at the cost of demeaning lower-ranking 
employees along the way.

Ellen wants to have a good reputation with these celebrities, and she wants them
to have the desire to come back on the show, so why wouldn’t she treat them well?
All in all, this isn’t about the stars and the way Ellen has treated them, it’s 
about her staff that has been treated poorly for years and have been too afraid 
to speak up.

Ellen has now filmed an apology video and sent a letter to her entire staff. [Variety magazine](https://variety.com/2020/tv/news/ellen-degeneres-sends-emotional-apology-to-staff-ep-ed-glavin-expected-to-depart-1234721495/)
quoted Ellen’s apology letter stating: “On day one of our show, I told everyone 
in our first meeting that ‘The Ellen DeGeneres Show’ would be a place of happiness—
no one would ever raise their voice, and everyone would be treated with respect.
Obviously, something changed, and I am disappointed to learn that this has not been
the case.”

Ellen is still fighting to get her career and fans back, but people are ready to
give their input as to who is fit to replace her on the daytime television show.

## **Yet another YouTube star bites the dust**

Not only have people been tearing Ellen apart, but they have also been coming for
YouTube stars, particularly with regard to the Black Lives Matter movement. YouTuber
[**Shane Dawson**](https://variety.com/2020/digital/news/shane-dawson-apology-racist-blackface-n-word-youtube-videos-1234692255/)
is someone that has been a part of countless wrong doings, but has never faced the
repercussions of his actions. 

Recently, people who _used_ to be fans rediscovered an old video from 2011 of Dawson
doing black face while imitating **Nicki Minaj**. Since the resurfacing of this 
video, [#ShaneDawsonIsOverParty](https://twitter.com/hashtag/shanedawsonisoverparty)
has been trending on **Twitter**. Not only has **Shane Dawson** been canceled for
his actions, the YouTuber has fully lost monetization of his channel.

##### _Behold: Shane Dawson’s second apology video in five years._

Dawson has now had to film an apology video _twice_ for his behavior, once in 2015
and again in 2020, but people have not forgiven him for what he has done.

## **The open letter heard ’round the world**

After watching countless celebrities face backlash similar to the criticism raised
against [her tweets](https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/j-k-rowling-doubles-down-what-some-critics-call-transphobic-n1229351),**
J.K. Rowling** developed an [open letter with](https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/07/08/letter-harpers-free-speech/)**
Harper’s Magazine.** In this letter, she talks about how the need to be politically
correct has stifled the chance for debate and does not allow people to have opposing
opinions. 

This letter has received mixed reviews to say the least. Some celebrities publicly
stated that they do not agree with the letter and that when asked to sign it, they
declined. [**Richard Kim**](https://twitter.com/RichardKimNYC/status/1280592642645114880?s=20),
the Enterprise Director of **HuffPost**, described the letter as funny and “trolling
the people it was allegedly trying to reach.”

**Richard Thompson Ford**, Stanford Law professor and a signer of the letter, was
[quoted](https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/07/08/letter-harpers-free-speech/)
saying, “I’ve witnessed too many cases of ferocious takedowns for defensible if 
ideologically unorthodox views or relatively minor breaches of political etiquette”
and that the letter is “important and necessary.”

## **Are they forgiven?**

The toxic part of cancel culture is that people are not given the chance to grow
from the mistakes they have made. While some actions and choices are deemed unforgivable,
other times social media users are so quick to cancel that they do not give people
the benefit of the doubt that they might have matured past the person they used 
to be. 

What do you think? Is cancel culture too toxic, or are people getting what they 
deserve for their actions?