Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Sunday, Jun 01, 2025

Did Childish Gambino call out cancel culture? The battle over the meaning of his tweets perfectly captures US’ cultural divide

Did Childish Gambino call out cancel culture? The battle over the meaning of his tweets perfectly captures US’ cultural divide

Donald Glover took to Twitter to seemingly blame cancel culture for the low quality of modern entertainment. Or did he? The debate about what he meant, with users seeing what they want to see in his words, sums up the culture war.

To say that Donald Glover, aka Childish Gambino, has creative chops would be an understatement. He’s not only a Grammy Award-winning recording artist, but has acted in and written several incredibly successful shows and films, and raised laughs as a stand-up comedian – a true Renaissance man of the arts.

He’s also a very private individual, so when he went on Twitter and discussed the idea of the fear of cancelation being responsible for a lack of creativity in the arts, it came out of leftfield.




Glover’s remarks could be taken two different ways. The term “canceled” could, of course, be referring to cancel culture. He could be talking about the fear that every creative individual faces whenever it comes to creating something new. Speaking as a comic book writer, I would be lying if I told you there wasn’t a persistent hint of doubt in the back of my mind that a hate mob could come after me on social media for not expressing what I’m “supposed to” because of my skin color, religion, or any other number of arbitrary qualifiers.

The other possibility is that he was talking about a television program literally being canceled by a network. He’s currently the creator, writer, and executive producer of the show Atlanta, and plenty of TV creatives have gone on record saying it’s a constant worry for anyone who works in that area of the arts. Nobody wants to be the person who gets the phone call confirming their show will no longer exist next season, and they need to wrap it up.

I’m of the opinion that Glover was thinking more of the former than the latter, however. And it seems I’m not alone in that thought. Cassie da Costa recently penned an op-ed for Vanity Fair in which she discussed the idea of Glover referencing cancel culture.

That said, Da Costa disagreed with the suggestion that cancel culture is causing a lack of creative edge, and bolstered her argument by pointing out that Woody Allen, Mel Gibson, and Roman Polanski have all gone on to receive professional praise after potentially career-ending scandals. I can’t agree with that take, though, on the grounds that it’s odd to compare what the aforementioned individuals went through to losing a job purely because of the wrath of a social media mob. I think individual cases need to be examined on their own merits.

Ultimately, if Glover is indeed talking about cancel culture, then I agree with him 100%. The fact of the matter is that a culture that demands silence whenever the ‘wrong’ opinion is uttered will always stifle creativity. A creative mind relies on the ability to think freely. That mind must be able to explore different ideas and possibilities that go beyond skin color, sexual orientation, and any other mundanity, and those ideas might not always be palatable.

If we look at the world of TV for a moment, I wonder if a show like The Shield could even be made in this day and age. And would a comic book such as Watchmen be written? There are so many people out there who are fearful about what they can and cannot do that they simply stick to the safe options. Some of those safe areas, like superhero stories, can still be entertaining, but I have to confess that I find myself going back to older entertainment on a regular basis simply because, outside of that realm, there isn’t much. As Glover says, “They can only experiment with aesthetic.”

Beyond that, the row over his tweets is a perfect illustration of the gladiatorial, Twitter-acceptance-driven state of the current cultural world. Maybe even Glover himself is guilty of what he’s writing about – he’s “afraid of being canceled”, so he’s offering an ambiguous take that can be understood either way, dependent on the reaction.

I think Donald Glover will probably be enjoying the different interpretations of his statements. There’s a commonality between the two understandings: both acknowledge that fear ultimately curbs creativity. Then again, there could be a third option: he’s simply speaking his mind without an agenda. And if that’s the case, he might just be the only person on social media who’s doing so.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
OPEC+ Agrees to Increase Oil Output for Third Consecutive Month
Turkey Detains Istanbul Officials Amid Anti-Corruption Crackdown
Meta and Anduril Collaborate on AI-Driven Military Augmented Reality Systems
EU Central Bank Pushes to Replace US Dollar with Euro as World’s Main Currency
European and Arab Ministers Convene in Madrid to Address Gaza Conflict
U.S. Health Secretary Ends Select COVID-19 Vaccine Recommendations
Trump Warns Putin Is 'Playing with Fire' Amid Escalating Ukraine Conflict
India and Pakistan Engage Trump-Linked Lobbyists to Influence U.S. Policy
U.S. Halts New Student Visa Interviews Amid Enhanced Security Measures
Trump Administration Cancels $100 Million in Federal Contracts with Harvard
SpaceX Starship Test Flight Ends in Failure, Mars Mission Timeline Uncertain
King Charles Affirms Canadian Sovereignty Amid U.S. Statehood Pressure
Iranian Revolutionary Guard Founder Warns Against Trusting Regime in Nuclear Talks
UAE Offers Free ChatGPT Plus Subscriptions to Citizens
Lebanon Initiates Plan to Disarm Palestinian Factions
Iran and U.S. Make Limited Progress in Nuclear Talks
The Daily Debate: The Fall of the Dollar — Strategic Reset or Economic Self-Destruction?
Trump Administration's Tariff Policies and Dollar Strategy Spark Global Economic Debate
OpenAI Acquires Jony Ive’s Startup for $6.5 Billion to Build a Revolutionary “Third Core Device”
Turkey Weighs Citizens in Public as Erdoğan Launches National Slimming Campaign
Saudi-Spanish Business Forum Commences in Riyadh
Saudi Arabia and Spain Sign MoU to Boost SME Sectors
UK Suspends Trade Talks with Israel Amid Gaza Offensive
Iran and U.S. Set for Fifth Round of Nuclear Talks Amid Rising Tensions
Russia Expands Military Presence Near Finland Amid Rising Tensions
Indian Scholar Arrested in Crackdown Over Pakistan Conflict Commentary
Israel Eases Gaza Blockade Amid Internal Dispute Over Military Strategy
President Biden’s announcement of advanced prostate cancer sparked public sympathy—but behind closed doors, Democrats are in panic
A Chinese company made solar tiles that look way nicer than regular panels!
Indian jet shootdown: the all-robot legion behind China’s PL-15E missiles
The Chinese Dragon: The True Winner in the India-Pakistan Clash
Australia's Venomous Creatures Contribute to Life-Saving Antivenom Programme
The Spanish Were Right: Long Working Hours Harm Brain Function
Did Former FBI Director Call for Violence Against Trump? Instagram Post Sparks Uproar
US and UAE Partner to Develop Massive AI Data Center Complex
Apple's $95 Million Siri Settlement: Eligible Users Have Until July 2 to File Claims
US and UAE Reach Preliminary Agreement on Nvidia AI Chip Imports
President Trump and Elon Musk Welcomed by Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim with Cybertruck Convoy
Strong Warning Issued: Do Not Use General Chatbots for Medical, Legal, or Educational Guidance
Saudi Arabia Emerges as Global Tech Magnet with U.S. Backing and Trump’s Visit
This was President's departure from Saudi Arabia. The Crown Prince personally escorted him back to the airport.
NVIDIA and Saudi Arabia Launch Strategic Partnership to Establish AI Centers
Trump Meets Syrian President Ahmad al-Shara in Historic Encounter
Trump takes a blow torch to the neocons and interventionists while speaking to the Saudis
US and Saudi Arabia Sign Landmark Agreements Across Multiple Sectors
Why Saudi Arabia Rolled Out a Purple Carpet for Donald Trump Instead of Red
Elon Musk Joins Trump Meeting in Saudi Arabia
Trump says it would be 'stupid' not to accept gift of Qatari plane
Quantum Computing Threatens Bitcoin Security
Michael Jordan to Serve as Analyst for NBA Games
×