Posted on 07/14/2020 8:57:50 AM PDT by EdnaMode
CBS is aggressively stepping up its efforts to be more inclusive to diverse television creators and writers, setting a slew of targets for the 2021/22 season.
The broadcaster is committing 25% of its script development budget to projects from creators, writers and producers who are Black, Indigenous and people of color. The scheme will begin with the 2021/22 development season.
It is also mandating that writers’ rooms for CBS shows must be staffed with a minimum of 40% BIPOC representation for the 2021/22 broadcast season. This will be increased to 50% for the 2022/23 season.
Deadline understands that at least six new and current shows for this coming fall schedule are expected to hit this 40% mark.
It has also committed to additional BIPOC writers on select CBS series for the upcoming 2020-2021 broadcast season.
This is a major move for a broadcast network and comes as the Black Lives Matters protests have seemingly started to have a material impact on Hollywood. CBS is the first broadcast network in the U.S. to put in hard targets.
It comes as CBS has been improving on the diversity front. In 2017, a Race In The Writers’ Room study from Color of Change Hollywood highlighted that CBS and The CW were the worst of the broadcast networks with respect to Black representation in writers’ rooms.
The network has been becoming more representative in this regard in recent years with the likes of Dee Harris-Lawrence taking over as showrunner on All Rise, Aaron Rahsaan Thomas as showrunner of S.W.A.T., Gina Yashere co-creating Bob Hearts Abishola and Jenny Lumet co-writing the pilot of Clarice with Alex Kurtzman.
“While steady progress has been made in recent years both in front of and behind the camera, change needs to happen faster, especially with creators and leadership roles on the shows,” said George Cheeks, President and Chief Executive Officer for the CBS Entertainment Group. “As a network with ambitions to be a unifier and an agent of change at this important time, these new initiatives will help accelerate efforts to broaden our storytelling and make CBS programming even more diverse and inclusive.”
If I ever watched CBS this might be of interest to me.But I don’t...so it isn’t.
They’re doing this not out of altruism but out of desperation. Television viewership continues to decline and they’re trying to reach segments of a dwindling audience.
Whatever - I must say, if there is even one white person working at CBS, then the entire corporation is racist.
To be perfectly honest, I cannot remember the last time that CBS has been tuned in to in our home. Seriously, I could not say. It has been that long ago.
All of this violates federal civil rights law.
When will we see the FBI and DoJ land on them like they did virtually every other American company starting in the early 1970s?
Somewhere south of “never”
They need balance, every story now is about Blacks (or Covid ending the world). Since when are Blacks 100% of the population?
Would it still count if all the POC in the writers room were Hispanic and Asian???? Maybe 1 or 2 Native Americans.....Would blacks accept that version of diversity?????
White people need not apply. Change your name to sound black or Hispanic before submitting a resume. Learn Ebonics. Learn Spanish. Get a tan. If all else fails, try blackface.
Revoke their television licenses.
Just do it.
As always, the market will destroy these morons.
You can mandate the people and elements of TV production but YOU CAN’T FORCE PEOPLE TO TUNE IN. Viewers will avoid these affirmative action shows like the plague. All of this will hasten the complete failure of Hollywood to remain a creative force.
Mediocrity is a death sentence in the creative field.
Remember, new TV shows and films are judged against the greatest ever made which most have already watched.
I watch two programs on that network...SEAL Team and Evil. That’s it.
what the heck is BIPOC?
If I ever watched CBS, I would never watch again.
The problem is they will only hire woke individuals and all their stories will center around the theme of wokeness which will get old very quickly.
I don’t know. Bisexual Indigenous Person Of Color maybe.
Blacklist 2020 version.
In twenty years we will be hearing stories on how white writer could not find work and so had to have a “POC” being their front man, having them present his work as theirs.
Why would anyone want to work for an organization like this?
Why would anyone want to work for an organization like this?
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