Same reason newspapers always write “allegedly”.
No need to be a jerk about it.
The “He’s was being written out of the script” story is the legend being offered to keep you from understanding that Smollet was in the employ of Kamela Harris and his “lynching” act got Harris’ stalled anti-lynching bill passed. This was a political stunt to get legislation through the Senate. Gonna blow up in their faces now that the two “people of interest” turn out to be black.
More popcorn....