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Adding to this ongoing thread. I’ve written a piece for @Vulture, just published, which contains new information about CBS, HR investigations, Eliza Dushku and the recent firing of an EP at a CBS program that has endured notable amount of turmoil: vulture.com/2019/01/adam-t…
CBS recently concluded an HR investigation into an exec producer who joined NCIS New Orleans last spring. This EP, Adam Targum, was fired Fri Jan 25. He was the drama's 2nd in command. This was the 4th investigation into an NCIS NOLA EP in 2.5 years. vulture.com/2019/01/adam-t…
Also in this @Vulture news story: Eliza Dushku’s name was mentioned to CBS HR by 3 CBS staffers midway through 2016 — many months before she appeared on Bull, where she was allegedly harassed by the show’s star in 2017 & later got a $9.5mill settlement vulture.com/2019/01/adam-t…
Adding to this thread again. I continue to encourage folks to look at the totality of the patterns over decades at CBS. Investigations into its workplace culture are apparently over. I remain doubtful, based on the next tweet, the real work at CBS has even begun.
Some may forget that well before #MeToo, CBS was regularly being grilled by reporters for its lack of inclusion among showrunners and leads on scripted programs. salon.com/2017/08/01/cbs…
This piece by Whitney Davis, formerly of CBS, is a MUST READ. It was published TODAY. Problems at CBS are far from over. The culture took time to get this way, but will the same amount of time be spent rooting out biases & toxicity at root of that culture? variety.com/2019/tv/news/c…
What Whitney Davis writes about, certainly regarding casting, echoes what I have heard for years. A 2016 EW story: “What message does it send,” a reporter asked pointed, “that the leads of your shows in the fall are all heterosexual white men?” ew.com/article/2016/0…
I'm just going to ask: Why does casting chief Peter Golden still have a job at CBS? He's a Moonves crony who, from everything I've heard from reliable sources, has been an obstacle to CBS shows being cast w inclusion at top of mind. His dept is also not known for inclusive hiring
Whitney Davis: "common theme was talent of color&creatives from marginalized communities weren’t good enough for CBS. I sat in meetings where Golden flipped thru headshots of minority actors, commenting they weren’t good enough while suggesting white actors who’d be a better fit"
2017: "When asked by Variety’s Maureen Ryan if CBS’s entirely white casting department (on both coasts!) contributes to how few diverse actors the network casts, [CBS exec Kelly] Kahl said he didn’t think that was part of the problem." vox.com/culture/2017/8… 🤔
Months after I asked that question, CBS did something it normally doesn't do: It publicized a new hire in the casting dept. Unusually, the network had hired a person of color for the job: deadline.com/2018/01/cbs-ce…
Was there an inclusive atmosphere at CBS in the casting dept & elsewhere that allowed that POC to thrive? Welll he's at Netflix now. Whitney Davis: "The one Latinx executive hired in casting last year lasted eight months." Looks like the problems at CBS are fixed, move along!
Look at thread above. Re CBS, I've reported on matters of toxicity, bias, lack of inclusion & white men being protected at the expense of everyone else for years now. Whitney Davis had to live it. I 10000% understand why she left CBS. Which is not "fixed" variety.com/2019/tv/news/c…
The cadre of executives who came up under Moonves are mostly still there and mostly in charge. Ask yourself if you really think they're serious about remaking CBS News/Ent culture & hiring practices from the ground up. I remain... unconvinced.
And I'll say it again: There are great writers, showrunners & humans at CBS. I toss these flamethrowers now & then because I believe they should be able to thrive at CBS (&anywhere). Not the institutionally powerful enablers, abusers & "everything is fine now!" see-no-evil folks.
Whitney Davis on CBS 2011-2013: "In every meeting I attended in those depts, I was the only black person & often the only person of color. Nothing prepared me for the lack of diversity I encountered in the Entertainment division...not one black creative executive at the network."
Hollywood is VERY good at 2 change-resistance strategies: 1 Waiting for attention of media & public to wander away from negative coverage (if any) 2 Distracting with shiny things until people stop paying attention to the worst patterns & problems. These strategies usually work.
Unless we continually remember & remind each other of underlying patterns and continually ask for real accountability, things won't change. I don't deny that things may be diff around edges at CBS. I hope so. Is the core, fundamental culture/mgmt different? Again... doubtful.
