If proven, Smollett allegations could be a 'career killer'

Jussie Smollett is enmeshed in weekly drama on the set of "Empire," the Fox TV series that gave the actor a breakout role and the fame to advance his social activism.

But a scene that played out on a dark Chicago street in January has left Smollett facing felony charges and raised the possibility that "Empire" could mark the pinnacle of the 38-year-old's career.

Smollett, who is black and gay, told police he was the victim of a hate crime committed by men who threw liquid in his face, yelled racist, anti-gay slurs and looped a noose around his neck. After a three-week investigation, Smollett was charged Wednesday with staging the attack with help from two brothers he knew and allegedly paid for their services.

This image released by Fox shows Jussie Smollett, left, and Terrence Howard in a scene from the "The Depth of Grief" episode of "Empire," which originally aired on Oct. 31. Smollett’s co-starring role in “Empire” may end up being the pinnacle of his career, industry observers and insiders said as the actor faces criminal charges that he faked a hate crime against himself. (Chuck HodesFox via AP)

Even in an industry in which bad or erratic behavior is expected , insiders and observers are stunned by what authorities allege was fakery intended in part to get Smollett publicity and a raise.

"This is incredible. No one does this," said Garth Ancier, a veteran network executive and a co-founder of the Fox network. If more money was his goal, that's what agents and negotiations are for, he said, calling the alleged hoax "beyond the pale."

"It's too bad that such a talented guy threw all that away," Ancier said, adding he didn't see how he could be kept on "Empire."

This image released by Fox shows Jussie Smollett in a scene from the "Pay For Their Presumptions" episode of "Empire," which originally aired on Oct. 3, 2018. Smollett’s co-starring role in “Empire” may end up being the pinnacle of his career, industry observers and insiders said as the actor faces criminal charges that he faked a hate crime against himself. (Chuck HodesFOX via AP)

Producers appeared to be doing that for now, with Smollett traveling directly after being released from jail on bond Thursday to the "Empire" set. There are two episodes left to make of the 18 airing this season, the fifth year for the series starring Taraji P. Henson and Terrence Howard as hip-hop moguls Cookie and Lucious Lyon.

Replacing Smollett at this point would be problematic. Writing his character, one of three Lyon sons, out of future seasons would be less so.

Smollett's legal team released a statement late Thursday calling Chicago police's version of events "an organized law enforcement spectacle that has no place in the American legal system.

This image released by Fox shows Jussie Smollett, left, and Taraji P. Henson in a scene from the "The Depth of Grief" episode of "Empire," originally airing on Oct. 31, 2018. Smollett’s co-starring role in “Empire” may end up being the pinnacle of his career, industry observers and insiders said as the actor faces criminal charges that he faked a hate crime against himself. (Chuck HodesFOX via AP)

"Mr. Smollett is a young man of impeccable character and integrity who fiercely and solemnly maintains his innocence and feels betrayed by a system that apparently wants to skip due process and proceed directly to sentencing," the statement said.

After Smollett was charged, TNT's celebrity battle-rap series "Drop the Mic" pulled an upcoming episode with him "in the interest of not being exploitative of an incredibly sensitive situation," the network said in a statement.

The Fox studio that makes "Empire" publicly stood behind Smollett when he first reported the attack and as skepticism about it arose. But it declined comment Thursday about what happens next as he fights charges of filing a false police report.

This image released by Fox show, from left, Bryshere Y. Gray, Terrence Howard, Taraji P. Henson and Jussie Smollett in a scene from the "Pay For Their Presumptions" episode of "Empire," which originally aired on Oct. 3, 2018. Smollett’s co-starring role in “Empire” may end up being the pinnacle of his career, industry observers and insiders said as the actor faces criminal charges that he faked a hate crime against himself. (Chuck HodesFOX via AP)

Experts in the field of crisis management were pessimistic. The online mockery Smollett is taking is unlikely to stop, and it could hinder any attempt to re-emerge, said Eric Dezenhall, CEO of the public relations firm Dezenhall Resources.

"The thing it's really hard to come back from is ridicule," Dezenhall said. "It can be easier to come back from something just bad. In our culture the whiff of something dangerous has a certain street cred. But here we're talking about a combination of malevolence and ridiculousness."

Eden Gillott, president of Gillott Communications, offered a similar take.

"This could be a career-killer. We've seen this many times. Society has become more intolerant and unforgiving," said Gillott, citing instances ranging from Kevin Spacey's firing from "House of Cards" for alleged sexual misconduct to Megyn Kelly's "Today" exit after she defended blackface costumes.

What Smollett is alleged to have done isn't analogous to either one — or to just about anything that's happened with a celebrity or prominent person in recent memory or in news files.

There have been stunts, such as Joaquin Phoenix's role in a so-called documentary, "I'm Still Here," directed by actor Casey Affleck and supposedly about Phoenix's career as a rapper in decline. The film's release came with public apologies and lawsuits attached.

Others have exaggerated their exploits, such as TV journalist Brian Williams' account of being in a helicopter hit by a rocket in the 2003 Iraq invasion or Hillary Clinton's 2008 account of landing under sniper fire during a 1990s trip as first lady.

But Smollett, instead of creating an image-burnishing fiction, positioned himself as a victim and the deserving centerpiece for outrage directed at his attackers. He said those who questioned him made him feel "victimized."

The allegation that Smollett did it for money could be seen as both a betrayal and baffling, given what he earns: more than $1.8 million for the current 18-episode season of "Empire," according to a person familiar with the situation.

Dezenhall said it would be tough for Smollett, who proclaimed himself innocent of the charges through his lawyers, to explain himself publicly.

"All of us have said something stupid, put something in an email we shouldn't have — we can understand that. But very few of us would say, 'I would orchestrate something like that to advance my career.' There's a difference between a mistake and a scheme," Dezenhall said. His advice to Smollett: "'Vanish for a few years, take up a cause, devote yourself to doing something good, and revisit it later.'"

Or search out people like Kandi Burruss, the singer-songwriter and reality star.

"I consider him a friend. I love him and regardless of if it's true or not, I'm still going to be here for him. I hate the situation but I don't hate the person," she told The Associated Press Thursday at the Essence Black Women in Hollywood luncheon.

AP Entertainment Writer Andrew Dalton and Cindy Martin contributed to his report.

Check out the AP's complete coverage of the Jussie Smollett case.

NEW DELHI (AP) — The hugely popular Chinese app TikTok may be forced out of the U.S., where a measure to outlaw the video-sharing app has won congressional approval and is on its way to President Biden for his signature.

In India, the app was banned nearly four years ago. Here's what happened:

In June 2020, TikTok users in India bid goodbye to the app, which is operated by Chinese internet firm ByteDance. New Delhi had suddenly banned the popular app, alongside dozens other Chinese apps, following a military clash along the India-China border. Twenty Indian and four Chinese soldiers were killed, and ties between the two Asian giants plunged to a new low.

The government cited privacy concerns and said that Chinese apps pose a threat to India’s sovereignty and security.

The move mostly drew widespread support in India, where protesters had been calling for a boycott of Chinese goods since the deadly confrontation in the remote Karakoram mountain border region.

“There was a clamour leading up to this, and the popular narrative was how can we allow Chinese companies to do business in India when we’re in the middle of a military standoff,” said Nikhil Pahwa, a digital policy expert and founder of tech website MediaNama.

Just months before the ban, India had also restricted investment from Chinese companies, Pahwa added. “TikTok wasn’t a one-off case. Today, India has banned over 500 Chinese apps to date.”

At the time, India had about 200 million TikTok users, the most outside of China. And the company also employed thousands of Indians.

TikTok users and content creators, however, needed a place to go — and the ban provided a multi-billion dollar opportunity to snatch up a big market. Within months, Google rolled out YouTube Shorts and Instagram pushed out its Reels feature. Both mimicked the short-form video creation that TikTok had excelled at.

“And they ended up capturing most of the market that TikTok had vacated,” said Pahwa.

In India, TikTok content was hyperlocal, which made it quite unique. It opened a window into the lives of small-town India, with videos coming from tier 2 and 3 cities that showed people doing tricks while laying down bricks, for example.

But for the most part, content creators and users in the four years since the ban have moved on to other platforms.

Winnie Sangma misses posting videos on TikTok and earning a bit of money. But after the ban, he migrated to Instagram and now has 15,000 followers. The process, for the most part, has been relatively painless.

“I have built up followers on Instagram too, and I am making money from it, but the experience isn’t like how it used to be on TikTok,” he said.

Rajib Dutta, a frequent scroller on TikTok, also switched to Instagram after the ban. “It wasn’t really a big deal,” he said.

The legislation to outlaw the app has won congressional approval and now awaits a signature from Biden.

The measure gives ByteDance, the app’s parent company, nine months to sell it, and three more if a sale is underway. If this doesn’t happen, TikTok will be banned. It would take at least a year before a ban goes into effect, but with likely court challenges, it could stretch longer.

In India, the ban in 2020 was swift. TikTok and other companies were given time to respond to questions on privacy and security, and by January 2021, it became a permanent ban.

But the situation in the U.S. is different, said Pahwa. “In India, TikTok decided not to go to court, but the U.S. is a bigger revenue market for them. Also, the First Amendment in America is fairly strong, so it’s not going to be as easy for the U.S. to do this as it was for India,” he said, in reference to free speech rights in the U.S. Constitution.

As Chinese apps proliferate across the world, Pahwa says countries need to assess their dependency on China and develop a way to reduce it as the apps can pose a national security risk.

The app is also banned in Pakistan, Nepal and Afghanistan and restricted in many countries in Europe.

“Chinese intelligence law and its cybersecurity law can allow Chinese apps to work in the interest of their own security. That creates a situation of distrust and it becomes a national security risk for others,” said Pahwa.

“There should be different rules for democratic countries and for authoritarian regimes where companies can act as an extension of the state,” he added.

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This story corrects the expert's erroneous reference to Fourth instead of First Amendment.

FILE- Activists of Jammu and Kashmir Dogra Front shout slogans against Chinese President Xi Jinping next to a banner showing the logos of TikTok and other Chinese apps banned in India during a protest in Jammu, India, July 1, 2020. (AP Photo/Channi Anand, File)