LA Times Executive Editor Says He Will Not Resign Amid Criticisms Over Newsroom Diversity
Top editor Norman Pearlstine spoke with staffers at a nearly five-hour town hall on the newsroom’s failures to recruit and support nonwhite journalists
Los Angeles Times executive editor Norman Pearlstine asserted during a four-hour-plus town hall meeting on Wednesday that he would not resign despite mounting criticism leveled against the paper’s top management by current and former staff members over failures to address the lack of recruitment and retention of Black journalists and others from underrepresented groups.
“I certainly don’t think that any of the discussions we’ve had today would make me think I should. I’m sorry, I didn’t hear the question that way, but if that’s what people are asking, I’m not resigning,” Pearlstine said, according to a recording of the call obtained by TheWrap.
The Zoom town hall came a day after the Black Caucus of the paper’s guild sent a letter to the paper’s owner, Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong, Pearlstine and managing editors Kimi Yoshino and Scott Kraft outlining a list of demands for a more representative newsroom. The letter was signed by 15 Black Caucus members and 183 other Guild members “in solidarity.” On social media, testimonies from current and former Black journalists were shared under the #BlackatLAT hashtag.
The meeting opened with Pearlstine speaking for roughly half an hour, where he admitted that until recently he thought that to be anti-racist meant being “color blind.” But the remainder of the meeting mainly focused on fielding questions from staff members to top management, which included concerns over the efficacy of a new senior editor position that would oversee staff development, recruitment, training and the newsroom’s Metpro fellowship program. (In a memo sent to staff earlier this month, reviewed by TheWrap, Pearlstine had announced the creation of the position as one of the “steps” toward “creating a more inclusive newsroom.”)
Numerous staffers also expressed their frustrations both on the call and in a 500-plus member newsroom Slack channel throughout the course of the meeting, according to messages reviewed by TheWrap. At one point in the meeting, top editors on the call — including Pearlstine, Yoshino, Kraft, deputy managing editors Julia Turner and Shelby Grad, and assistant managing editor Angel Rodriguez — apologized for failing to do better on hiring and retaining diverse staff members.
“I have realized, just as I’ve come to understand the difference between being not racist and anti-racist, that it’s, you know, I’ve always — I can’t think of a time that anyone on staff sought a meeting with me that I didn’t take, but that’s not sufficient to deal with the issues you’re talking about. What really has to be required is to be far more proactive than I was. It wasn’t that I was doing nothing, but that I wasn’t being proactive enough,” Pearlstine said.
When asked about a timeline for when top management would announce changes to address staffers’ concerns, Pearlstine said they’d be able to share something by the beginning of next week, according to the recording. He also said newsroom leaders would commit to meeting, one-on-one, with each member of the guild’s Black Caucus, as well as offer meetings with any individuals or groups who wanted to raise concerns.
A smaller group discussion on newsroom inequity is also expected to take place later this week.
“Management was apologetic, but they had very few firm deadlines for their next steps. The only way they can really fix these problems is through urgent and sustained action, and that will involve meeting the demands of the L.A. Times Guild’s Black Caucus,” Matt Pearce, an officer for the guild, told TheWrap.
'30 Rock,' 'Scrubs' and Other TV Shows and Movies Pulled Over Blackface and Racial Insensitivity (Photos)
The May 25 killing of George Floyd while in the custody of Minneapolis police prompted protests over police brutality and racial injustice across the country — leading many networks and streaming services to reconsider programming. Here are some movies and TV shows that have been canceled or shelved (sometimes temporarily).
"COPS"
In the wake of protests over police brutality following the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer, the Paramount Network canceled the long-running reality show "COPS" one week ahead of premiering its 33rd season. The show, which ran on Fox for 25 years, jumped to Paramount Network (then called Spike TV) in 2013.
Paramount Network
"Gone With the Wind"
HBO Max quietly pulled the Oscar-winning 1939 movie, which has long been criticized for racist depictions of black people for for glorifying the Civl War-era south, from the weeks-old streaming service. In a statement on June 9, the company explained that the "ethnic and racial prejudices" depicted in the film "were wrong then and are wrong today." The company reintroduced the film with a video introduction noting “the film’s treatment of this world through a lens of nostalgia denies the horrors of slavery, as well as its legacy of racial inequality."
WarnerMedia
"Live PD"
On June 10, A&E abruptly canceled the Dan Abrams-hosted reality show "Live PD" that had been its top-rated series. The decision came amid ongoing protests over police brutality but also followed producers' admission they had destroyed footage of a 40-year-old Texas man who died in police custody after being tased while begging for his life.
A&E
Chris Lilley's “Summer Heights High,” “Angry Boys,” “We Can Be Heroes” and “Jonah From Tonga”
Four comedies from Australian comic Chris Lilley were pulled from Netflix in New Zealand and Australia due to criticisms of the shows’ depictions of people of color and the use of blackface and brownface makeup by Lilley, who is white, and others on the shows. Lilley uses blackface to play black rapper S.mouse in “Angry Boys” and brownface to play Jonah, a teenage Tonga native, in “Summer Heights High” and its spinoff series “Jonah From Tonga.” In “We Can Be Heroes,” he plays Ricky Wong, a Chinese physics student.
Australian Broadcast Company
"Little Britain"
The BBC sketch comedy show, which aired from 2003-05 and featured David Walliams and Matt Lucas playing a range of often stereotypical characters (sometimes in blackface) was pulled from most U.K. streaming services in early June, including Netflix, BBC iPlayer and BritBox.
BBC
"Fawlty Towers"
The BBC removed a 1975 episode of the classic John Cleese sitcom that included a number of racial epithets, including the N-word, from its UKTV streaming service. After lobbying from Cleese and others, the network announced it would reinstate the episode with "extra guidance and warnings ... to highlight potentially offensive content."
BBC
"It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia"
On June 11, Netflix pulled a sixth-season episode of the long-running sitcom from its service in the U.K. over the depiction of two characters wearing blackface. (The series streams on Hulu in the U.S.)
"W/ Bob and David"
On June 16, Netflix pulled an episode of Bob Odenkirk and David Cross’ sketch comedy series “W/ Bob and David” over a sketch that features Cross in blackface. Cross and Odenkirk have since defended the sketch.
Netflix
"The Mighty Boosh" and "The League of Gentleman"
These English comedies were pulled from Netflix in the UK over scenes involving blackface. They were not previously available in the U.S.
A scene from "The Mighty Boosh" via YouTube
"30 Rock"
Co-creators Tina Fey and Robert Carlock, along with NBCUniversal, requested the removal of four episodes containing blackface and other racially insensitive material.
Hulu removed three episodes of the sitcom “Scrubs” which featured blackface at the request of the show’s producers and ABC Studios. Series creator Bill Lawrence had previously tweeted that an effort to remove offensive episodes of the show was in the works.
In late June, Netflix pulled the “Community” Season 2 episode “Advanced Dungeons & Dragons,” which features Ken Jeong’s character, Ben Chang, wearing blackface during a game of “Dungeons & Dragons."
NBC
"Golden Girls"
Hulu pulled a third-season episode of the classic sitcom in which Rue McClanahan and Betty White's characters are mistaken for wearing blackface when they are actually wearing mud masks.
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New times call for a new look at what we should watch and stream
The May 25 killing of George Floyd while in the custody of Minneapolis police prompted protests over police brutality and racial injustice across the country — leading many networks and streaming services to reconsider programming. Here are some movies and TV shows that have been canceled or shelved (sometimes temporarily).