Posted on 03/17/2019 12:13:55 PM PDT by Jyotishi
The cancellation of "One Day at a Time" hurts in a way the diversity numbers can't fully convey.
In Netflix's Cuban-American family sitcom, "One Day at a Time," Rita Moreno's punchy one-liners are a complete delight. Justina Machado, who stars as single mom Penelope Alvarez, triggers a sobfest every time she delivers an utterly vulnerable monologue. The series tackles issues from homophobia to colorism with sensitivity and insight, and offers Latinos -- members of a woefully underserved demographic -- the chance to see ourselves, warts and all, while still reliably delivering laughs and earning rave reviews.
Aside from being a joy to watch, it is a rare example of a television show about the United States-born children and grandchildren of Latin American immigrants. That's why its cancellation is more than just the loss of a critical darling -- it's an egregious erasure of Latinos at a time when anti-Latino rhetoric floods our political discourse, and it's a reminder of Netflix's tepid support for our stories, just when we need them the most.
While the advent of streaming platforms has ushered in an uptick in the overall number of series produced, the promise of increased diversity has not changed much for Latinos. Despite being the largest ethnic minority in the United States and making up nearly 18 percent of the population, Latino roles in digital scripted series constitute a measly 7.2 percent, a figure that's even lower for broadcast and cable.
"One Day at a Time," the reboot of Norman Lear's 1975 sitcom of the same name, launched in 2017 as Netflix's first foray into U.S.-Latino programming. Not long after season three debuted in February, co-showrunner Gloria Calderón Kellett took to Twitter to share grim news.
In a meeting with the streaming giant, executives affirmed that -- despite holding a perfect
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Poor viewer numbers say the Latinos turned their back first.
Cultural onanism.
I remember back when it was called ¿Que Pasa, USA?
They still have Univision and Telemundo.
More Chico and the Man will fix it!!!
Bring back the Frito Bandito!!!
This, obviously, means someone needs to fire up a Neto Flixo for the hispanicers.
Yup. In general networks do not stop producing shows that are pulling high viewing numbers.
Probably because enough liked the Bonnie Franklin-Mackenzie Phillips-Valerie Bertinelli version more.
The bean counters are never satisfied.
Rita Morena ‘demanded’ a role in the new Steven Spielberg of West Side Story. She said it couldn’t happen without her.
Spielberg promptly gave her the same role she played some 50 years before. Either give her a role or prepare for Racist Cards, Ageist Cards and Male Privilege Cards to be played against the production.
She would have been on all the talk shows badmouthing him. Some directors still wouldn’t care.
All that complaining would only produce greater product awareness. Rita’s opinion of her importance remains sky high.
Just watch Narcos and learn your Spanish swear words
Cry me a river. Netflix is the bad guy for not continuing to take a loss and throwing the show free money, give me a break. It’s not Netflix’s fault nobody wants to watch your stupid show.
Netflix hired Channing Dungey as VP of Original Programming. While at ABC, Dungey famously cancelled Tim Allen's top-rated "Last Man Standing" and fired Roseanne Barr after her eponymous show's juggernaut reboot.
Dungey has job security. She doesn't care if a show is a hit or not.
I wouldn’t watch that crap for all the tea in China.
Oh, boo hoo. There are plenty of other ethnic groups/cultures that you rarely (if ever) see on TV.
So what are we saying? That cancellation of a show starring minorities is discrimination, is therefore not allowed???
Really???
Univision and Telemundo and all the other spanish language stations on TV turned their back on everyone but lateeeeeeenos.
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