Roseanne Barr makes TV apology for controversial tweet

Roseanne Barr has apologised for her "ill-worded" tweet and denied racism in her first TV interview since her ABC sitcom was axed amid the controversy.

Speaking to Fox News on Thursday, she said her tweet comparing ex-Obama aide Valerie Jarrett - an African-American - to an ape had "cost her everything".

Barr told host Sean Hannity her tweet was meant to address US-Iran nuclear policy and not Jarrett's ethnicity.

Addressing Jarrett directly, the comic said she "never meant" to cause hurt.

"I'm sorry you feel harmed," she added.

Barr's tweet sparked outrage on social media in May and led ABC to cancel the reboot of her self-titled show about a working-class American family.

Thursday's hour-long interview also saw the actress reassert that she believed Jarrett to be white at the time she posted the statement.

Barr also repeated previous explanations for her tweet, including that she was under the influence of the sleeping pill Ambien, had drunk two beers and was taking anti-depressants on the night she posted the message.

Addressing the scale of the backlash, the 65-year-old called for the public and media to recognise her apology.

"I feel like I have apologised and explained and asked for forgiveness and made recompense," she said.

A vocal supporter of US President Donald Trump, Barr received support from the White House in the ensuing scandal.

And the embattled TV star reciprocated during her conversation with Hannity.

"I'm not a racist and the people who voted for Trump, they're not racist either, and Trump isn't a racist, sorry," she said.

ABC has since ordered a spin-off of the show called The Conners, which is due to air in October.

The original Roseanne writers, producers and cast members, excluding Barr, will work on the new show.

The network has also stressed that Barr will have no financial or creative involvement.