A couple weeks ago, Josh Duggar of the successful reality show 19 Kids and Counting (formerly 17 Kids and Counting and 18 Kids and Counting) admitted that he molested five underage girls… and his sisters were among them. Once the news spread, the show’s broadcaster TLC pulled the plug but it’s not confirmed if they cancelled the Duggar family-centred series. Advertisers including Walgreens and General Mills have also stopped promoting the show.
TLC’s actions was met with backlash from the show’s fans. Some argued that Josh Duggar made a “mistake” because he was a teen with raging hormones – he’s 27, has a wife and a family of his own – he’s an adult. Even his wife Anna Duggar defended that he had “past teenage mistakes” and “gone down a wrong path and had humbled himself before God and those whom he had offended.”
Molestation is a mistake? Newflash: it’s a crime – still a crime no matter how long ago he committed it. Molesting his own sisters is no big deal? Molesting any female is OK because he was a teenager?
Other fans have cried over that their favourite show was off the screens and vowed that they wouldn’t watch anything broadcasted by TLC. A portion expressed that the show and the rest of the cast shouldn’t be condemned, only Josh Duggar. Some are blaming critics and haters for getting a kick out of this controversy. Classic. While fans are “praying” over Duggar and his family, there’s not much sympathy or talk about the victims.
So that leaves us to ponder… should the private life of a celeb have an effect on their work? After all, it’s personal. We’re familiar with “keep your personal and professional life separate”, but should that apply to celebs? Those who have been caught and punished for posting things on social media have sometimes jeopardized their careers, even if those statements are their own thoughts. And every now and then, we get a statement from an actor to apologise for something offensive.
The one thing about acting or being part of an entertainment show is that a lot of work comes from teamwork. You can’t disappoint people. Crew members and cast need to work together to uphold a project – just like a group assignment.
It seems hard to separate one’s personal life from their career, especially if it’s a serious issue that will affect others. Johnny Deep suffered an injury on the set of the new Pirates of the Caribbean film, causing shooting to be delayed until he got back on his feet. Of course something like sexual abuse will have impact on a show/film. The creators wouldn’t want people to see their work in a negative light, and them being linked to those who are accused or questioned for committing crimes.
It doesn’t help that Duggar’s parents Jim Bob and Michelle covered up the crime (though there are reports that said they went to the police, despite no charges being made), explaining that he received some help for his behaviour; not professional help since the family frowns on that. Apparently he himself made an incest joke at some point during 19 Kids and Counting, and furthermore, the family practices several “Christian” rules that maintain a patriarchal view.
The rules are “a combination of beliefs that run counter to mainstream America: absolute female submission, a ban on dating, homeschooling, a rejection of higher education for women, and shunning of contraception in favour of trying to have as many children as humanly possible.”
And the show has fans?
Along with his and his wife’s official website being taken down, Duggar resigned from his position as executive director of non-profit organisation Family Research Council, which aims to maintain “traditional family values”, and is anti-LGBT, anti-abortion, divorce and stem cell research. Anti-everything, actually. Seriously, why does the show have fans? Why is it popular?
Whether or not Duggar and his parents will face charges is unknown. It’s difficult to bring celebs to justice as traditionally, we’ve seen that most get away with it and the victims are often met with skepticism, especially if the crime happened years ago. When will famous people get it into their heads that they’re not above the hand of law?
As Lindy West puts it: “what’s frightening is that we’re so accustomed to giving powerful, famous men the benefit of the doubt that, on a cultural level, we treat men’s reputations with the same reverence as victims’ safety.”
Jim Bob and Michelle protected their son instead of their daughters and the rest of the victims, and now so are his supporters. Nothing is known about the victims (Duggar’s sisters), and what they’re going through because no statements or interviews with them have been conducted as of yet.
Duggar has gotten away with a crime five times (so far). TLC had every right to pull his family’s show off and hopefully it will be cancelled – it wouldn’t be the first time. In 2014, TLC cancelled Here Comes Honey Boo Boo when reports of matriarch June Shannon dating a convicted child molester surfaced and it was later confirmed that Shannon’s daughter was molested by him.