Entertainment

TLC Made the Right Decision Here

by Loretta Donelan

Though all of the drama surrounding the Here Comes Honey Boo Boo family has been heartbreaking, it's nice to see that at least TLC seems to have the children's best interests in mind. According to reports, in light of its abrupt cancellation, Honey Boo Boo matriarch Mama June will not be payed in full for the unaired season of the series as network TLC has, smartly, placed full blame for the cancellation on Mama June — however, the network will still ensure that the Honey Boo Boo kids will receive their paychecks for the unaired season, in full.

Honestly, it makes sense why TLC would do this. The reason for the abrupt cancellation, if you haven't heard, is Mama June's fault: As recent reports have stated, Mama June has been dating Mark McDaniel, a convicted child molester whom Mama June's own daughter, the now 20-year-old Anna Caldwell, has publicly named as the man who sexually assaulted her when she was a child.

TLC's grounds for the reduced salary in Mama June's case is a morality clause, and it's definitely the right thing for the network to do, in addition to ensuring the children are still paid and taken care of. It's rare that the network that has brought us I Didn't Know I Was Pregnant and Sex Sent Me To The E.R. gets to take a moral stance on anything, but they're handling it extremely well.

I'm just hoping that all the children in the family are safe, and it raises interesting questions on how much a network can interfere. Mama June has, alarmingly, insisted that all is well in her family, though she clearly doesn't seem to understand the gravity of the situation: In a recent interview, after all, she was laughing and throwing deuces in jest. It just really makes me worry for her children, and I just hope that at least someone's making sure the kids are safe.