Josh Duggar Scandal: Pressure Mounts To Cancel ’19 Kids And Counting’ As New Details Emerge

Josh Duggar launched a scandal that could soon lead to 19 Kids And Counting being canceled, with new details emerging about the allegations that he molested a number of children, including his own sisters.

The 19 Kids And Counting family came under fire last week when allegations surfaced that a teenage Josh Duggar molested a number of children, including his own sisters. The timing of the alleged acts has placed a target on his father Jim Bob Duggar, who reportedly ran for a U.S. Senate seat in Arkansas even while he knew about his son’s misdeeds.

As Gawker reported, the timing was even more controversial given Jim Bob’s strong statements against incest.

During a Republican primary debate, Jim Bob Duggar was asked if he believed in abortion for a woman who had been raped. “If a woman is raped, the rapist should be executed instead of the innocent unborn baby,” he replied, adding, “Rape and incest represent heinous crimes and as such should be treated as capital crimes.”Duggar would lose the primary election. But all of this happened while allegations against Josh were piling up, and both his parents reportedly knew about it, The Huffington Post reported.

“While Duggar was running on a platform that included this position about rape, the first allegations that Josh had molested a child surfaced. According to In Touch Weekly, which broke the story, a female minor told Duggar in March 2002 that Josh, who was 14 at the time, had been sexually touching her as she slept. Josh admitted as much to his parents in July 2002.”

“A police report suggests that the first victim who came forward lived in the same home as Josh. In March 2003, more minors accused Josh of touching their breasts and genitals. The police report suggests that four of the five total victims were Josh’s sisters.”

“Duggar did not alert authorities. He reportedly did not punish his son at all, except to send him to live and work with a family friend for a while.”

As new allegations surface about Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar’s knowledge of the allegations, pressure has mounted against TLC, the network airing 19 Kids And Counting. The network quickly pulled the show from the lineup but made no statement about its long-term future.

A fan-led boycott is now calling on advertisers to dump 19 Kids And Counting, but even as the Josh Duggar scandal continues to grow TLC has made no official determination on the show.

[Image via TLC]