ViacomCBS fired television star Nick Cannon on Tuesday for making anti-Semitic comments during a recent podcast in which he spoke about conspiracy theories about the Jewish people and praised a minister known for his anti-Semitic comments.
ViacomCBS is the parent company of MTV and cable channel TeenNick, which prominently featured Mr. Cannon for years on various platforms.
Cannon, 39, had worked as executive producer and president of TeenNick, a network spin-off that Nickelodeon was aimed at teens. He had also hosted and executive produced the MTV comedy show “Wild ‘N Out”.
A ViacomCBS spokeswoman said in a statement that the company categorically denounced all forms of anti-Semitism.
“We have spoken to Nick Cannon about an episode of his ‘Cannon’s Class’ podcast on YouTube, which promoted hate speech and spread anti-Semitic conspiracy theories,” the statement said. “While we support ongoing education and dialogue in the fight against bigotry, we are deeply concerned that Nick has not recognized or apologized for perpetuating anti-Semitism, and we are ending our relationship with him.”
In a tweet Monday, Mr. Cannon said, “Anyone who knows me knows that I have no hatred in my heart or malicious intent.”
A representative for Mr. Cannon did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday night.
Cannon, actor and musician, is also host of the Fox show “The Masked Singer”. It was not immediately clear whether Mr. Cannon’s relationship with the network was being reevaluated. Fox did not respond to requests for comment Tuesday night.
Mr. Cannon’s firing on ViacomCBS came after star catcher DeSean Jackson was fined and disciplined by the Philadelphia Eagles last week for sharing an anti-Semitic quote attributed to Hitler.
On the June 30 podcast episode, Mr. Cannon was interviewing rapper Richard Griffin, known as Professor Griff, about his dismissal from the hip-hop group Public Enemy in 1989.
Mr. Griffin left the group after he said in an interview with The Washington Times: “The Jews are evil. And we can prove this. He also said that Jews were responsible for “most of the wickedness that occurs worldwide.”
Speaking to Mr. Cannon, Mr. Griffin duplicated his previous comments on the influence of the Jewish people in the music and media industry.
“Now they hate me because I told the truth,” said Griffin.
“You are talking about facts,” Cannon said. “There is no reason to be afraid of anything when you are telling the truth.”
Mr. Cannon said it was an honor to have “legend” Mr. Griffin on his podcast. He also said it was a shame that Louis Farrakhan, a minister known for his history of anti-Semitic comments, had been silenced on Facebook.
In response to Griffin’s claim that six mainstream media companies were controlled by the Jewish people, Cannon said it was comparable to the power of the Rothschilds, the bank scions who are the focus of anti-Semitic conspiracy theories.
“I find myself wanting to debate this idea and it gets really weak and confusing for me when we give so much power to ‘them’ and ‘them’ and then they become illuminati, the Zionists, the Rothchilds.” Cannon said later on the podcast.
He also echoed Mr. Griffin’s comments about how blacks are Semites by definition and that Semites are not white.
“You cannot be anti-Semitic when we are Semitic people,” Cannon said. “That is our birthright. So if that is our birthright, there is no hatred involved. “
