WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar Tells Staff Racism Is 'Problem' at Company

Photo credit: WarnerMedia

In a panel on racism broadcast to WarnerMedia staff Thursday and obtained by TheWrap, CEO Jason Kilar admitted to his employees that racism is “a problem” for their company that he is committed to change. Later Thursday, the company outlined its plans to donate money and implement further changes.

“The observation I wanted to share was that we’ve got a problem. This isn’t just a problem in society or in the United States of America. We’ve got a problem at WarnerMedia, as well,” he said, repeatedly thanking those who had written to him over the weekend to share their experiences at the company.

In a company-wide email sent Saturday and reviewed by TheWrap, Kilar wrote he was “horrified by what has happened in our country recently as it relates to the treatment of the Black community.” He shared links to articles and speeches that addressed American racism and vowed to listen to employees of color as well as “lead with empathy and action in this moment.”

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During Thursday’s event, Kilar went on to share three sentiments “very common” in the emails he received from employees, which he said he read multiple times: “I heard that people — whether they’d been at WarnerMedia for one year or 20 years — that in many ways they had never felt truly seen or heard. And it breaks my heart when I hear that. I know it to be true but yet it also breaks my heart.”

Kilar has only been with WarnerMedia for a little over a month, taking over as CEO on May 1. Since AT&T acquired what was then Time Warner, much of the leadership structure has undergone an overhaul. Last year, longtime heads of HBO (Richard Plepler) and Turner (David Levy) departed, while Bob Greenblatt was brought in to oversee WarnerMedia’s entertainment business, and Ann Sarnoff took over for Kevin Tsujihara as head of Warner Bros.

HBO Max chief content officer Kevin Reilly and CNN head Jeff Zucker are among the longest-tenured upper-level executives within the content side of the company. Reilly came aboard in 2014 to run Turner networks TBS and TNT, while Zucker has led CNN since 2013.

The second common sentiment expressed to Kilar, he said, was that Black WarnerMedia team members do their jobs every day with fear for their husbands and sons.

“I don’t know what that feeling is like. I don’t fear for the safety of my wife and my daughters and my son and I can only begin to imagine what it must be like to wake up every day and have fear for your spouse or your children in the world that you live,” Kilar admitted.

Also Read: National Association of Black Journalists President's Advice for Newsroom Leaders Amid Protests: Diversify, Listen and Support

He went on to point out the final thing he took from the correspondence he received: “Their children cringe with anxiety when they leave the house to go to work at WarnerMedia and it’s bad enough that this impacts adults but the fact that this impacts children is something that we should never, ever allow.”

“We’ve got a problem and we need to take action,” he said, advising employees that WarnerMedia is “in the process of putting together a plan” to do that.

Thursday’s panel — accessible to employees from all WarnerMedia properties like CNN, Cartoon Network and TNT — featured Dr. Robin DiAngelo, author of “White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism,” CNN political commentator Van Jones and CNN legal analyst Laura Coates.

As for Kilar’s commitment to listening and change, by the conclusion of the panel, at least one staffer was moved. A Twitter user named Adrienne Ford sang its praises, writing, “Just got off a company wide townhall at @WarnerMedia where leaders and fellow employees discussed race. I AM FLOORED that a company and its leaders devoted SO MUCH to this cause and the ONGOING initiatives announced. THIS matters. I’ve never been so grateful to work for a company.”

On Twitter later in the day, WarnerMedia announced its plans to combat the societal issues addressed in the staff call, noting that like other companies, it already donates to social-justice oriented organizations, but “money is only a part of the solution.”

“So, in addition to our ongoing financial support, we are providing these organizations with access to our platforms to tell and amplify their message. To start, we’re giving dedicated on-air inventory to Color Of Change and NAACP LDF. Others will be added in the weeks to come,” wrote the company after a review of the day’s panel.

“We are taking an additional step to help more Black and other underrepresented creators break through by expanding our content innovation program OneFifty with an additional $500k to seed issue-focused creative ideas from communities who often go unheard,” the company continued, adding that it will also begin “creating group discussions for those employees who are impacted by racial trauma and increasing counseling resources–including remote resources, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.”

“This is only the beginning,” the tweets concluded.

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In an email late Monday, WarnerMedia executive vice president and chief enterprise inclusion officer Christy Haubegger — also a presence in Thursday’s panel — informed staff that WarnerMedia’s brands would be participating in the #BlackOutTuesday event and making the movie “Just Mercy” available for free streaming for the month of June.

Various industry leaders and individuals participated in the blackout. Major music labels agreed to observe how the industry can support black artists, with some stopping work and agreeing to release no new music. In other industries, like at WarnerMedia, social media posts were halted. Individuals, too, posted simple black squares to their Instagram accounts and vowed not to post personal content for the day, using the hashtag #blackoutTuesday.

Celebrities Who Have Died From the Coronavirus (Photos)

The world continues to be upended by the coronavirus pandemic, with more people contracting COVID-19 as the days pass. While many have recovered, some have died from complications of the illness. These are the names of some notable figures from Hollywood and the media that we have lost.
Terrence McNally, a four-time Tony Award-winning playwright, died on March 24 at the age of 81 of complications from the coronavirus. His works included "Master Class," "Love! Valour! Compassion!" and "Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune," which later became a film with Michelle Pfeiffer and Al Pacino.
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Italian actress Lucia Bosè, who starred in such films as Michelangelo Antonioni’s "Story of a Love Affair" (1950) and Juan Antonio Bardem’s "Death of a Cyclist" (1955), died on March 23 of pneumonia after contracting COVID-19, according to the Guardian. She was 89.
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Chef Floyd Cardoz, winner of "Top Chef Masters" Season 3, died at the age of 59 of coronavirus complications on March 25.
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Mark Blum, who starred in "Desperately Seeking Susan," "Crocodile Dundee" and the Lifetime/Netflix series "You," died on March 26 of coronavirus complications. The veteran character actor and regular on New York City stages was 69.
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Maria Mercader, a CBS News veteran who worked for over 30 years as a reporter and talent director, died March 29 after testing positive for coronavirus. She was 54.
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Grammy-winning country music singer Joe Diffie died March 29 due to complications from the coronavirus. He announced his diagnosis just two days prior.
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American rock musician Alan Merrill, best known for co-writing and recording the original version of "I Love Rock 'n' Roll," died March 29 of complications from the coronavirus. He was 69.
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Popular Japanese comedian Ken Shimura, whose career spanned decades, died March 29 due to complications from the coronavirus. He was 70.
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Andrew Jack, a dialect coach who most recently was hired to work with Robert Pattinson on the new Batman movie, died March 31 of complications from coronavirus, TMZ reports. He also appeared in "Star Wars: Episode VII" as a member of Leia's resistance. Jack was 76.
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Adam Schlesinger, Fountains of Wayne singer and "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" contribute, died at the age of 52 from coronavirus complications on April 1.
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Ellis Marsalis Jr., New Orleans jazz legend and father of Wynton and Branford Marsalis, died at 85 from COVID-19 complications, Branford said. "Ellis Marsalis was a legend. He was the prototype of what we mean when we talk about New Orleans jazz... He was a teacher, a father, and an icon — and words aren’t sufficient to describe the art, the joy and the wonder he showed the world," New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell said also.
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Eddie Large, one-half of the comedy duo Little and Large, died April 2 after contracting coronavirus while hospitalized for heart failure. He was 78.
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Sergio Rossi, the Italian shoe designer, died at age 84 after being hospitalized with the virus, the brand confirmed in an Instagram post Friday.
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Patricia Bosworth, a stage and screen actress turned journalist who penned celebrity biographies, died April 2 from complications of the coronavirus. She was 86.
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Tom Dempsey, New Orleans Saints legendary kicker who was born without toes on his right foot and wore a flat shoe that he kicked with, died on April 4 from complications of COVID-19.
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John Prine, one of the most influential and revered folk and country songwriters of the last 50 years, died on April 6 at the age of 73 after being infected with the COVID-19 virus.
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Allen Garfield, who appeared in such films as “The Conversation,” “Nashville” and “Irreconcilable Differences,” died April 7 due to coronavirus complications, according to his sister. He was 80.
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Charles Gregory, an Emmy-nominated hairstylist who frequently collaborated with Tyler Perry on his films and TV shows, died of complications from COVID-19 on April 8.
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Hilary Heath, an actress and producer who starred opposite Vincent Price in horror movies in the late 1960s and early '70s, died in April of COVID-19 complications. She was 74.
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Rick May, a voice actor best known to gamers as the husky-throated Soldier in Team Fortress 2, died in Swedish nursing home on April 13 after contracting COVID-19. He was 79.
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Allen Daviau, a 5-time Oscar-nominated cinematographer, died April 15 at age 77. He frequently collaborated with Steven Spielberg, and worked on such films as "E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial" and "The Color Purple"
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Henry Grimes, celebrated jazz bassist, died on April 15 at age 84, according to WGBO. He worked with such legends as Thelonius Monk, Charles Mingus and Sonny Rollins.
"Knight Rider" and "Magnum P.I." producer Joel Rogosin died of coronavirus at the MPTF nursing home. He became the fifth person to die from COVID-19 complications at the facility.
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Rapper Fred the Godson died after contracting coronavirus, a representative confirmed to Complex. He wrote on social media of his diagnosis on April 6, but he did not recover.
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Art director Matteo De Cosmo, who worked on films including "Emergence," "The Punisher" and "Luke Cage," died of coronavirus complications. He was 52.
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Roy Horn, best known as half of the legendary Siegfried & Roy magic and animal act in Las Vegas, died on May 8 from complications due to coronavirus.
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Legendary Auburn football coach Pat Dye died on June 1 after combating COVID-19 and other medical conditions. He was 80.
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Chris Trousdale, a member of the boy band Dream Street, died of coronavirus complications on June 2. He was 34.
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Broadway star Nick Cordero passed away on July 5 due to complications from coronavirus. He was 41.
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Herman Cain, the former CEO of Godfather's Pizza who sought the Republican nomination for president in 2012, died July 30 from complications of the coronavirus. He was 74. He was hospitalized in Atlanta just days after attending a campaign rally for Donald Trump in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where he was seen without a mask.
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Trini Lopez, the singer of "If I Had a Hammer" and an actor in "The Dirty Dozen," died on Aug. 11 from COVID-19. He was 83.
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Tom Seaver, Hall of Fame baseball pitcher, died on Aug. 31 in his sleep of complications of Lewy body dementia and COVID-19.
Harold Budd, ambient musician and composer for several Hollywood films, died from complications of the coronavirus, his manager said Dec. 8. The Brian Eno and Cocteau Twins collaborator was 84 years old.
Carol Sutton, actress who has starred on HBO’s “Lovecraft County” and OWN’s “Queen Sugar" and appeared in such films as "Monster's Ball," "Ray" and "The Help," died of complications of COVID-19 on Dec. 10. She was 76.
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Charley Pride, one of the first Black performers to break through in the country music scene, died of complications from COVID-19 on Dec. 12, just weeks after his final performance at the CMA Awards show back in November. He was 86.
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Grammy-winning country singer K.T. Oslin, died Dec. 21. Although her cause of death was not immediately known, a friend told the Associated Press that she had been diagnosed with COVID-19. She was 78.
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While many celebrities who contracted COVID-19 have recovered, some have died from complications of the illness

The world continues to be upended by the coronavirus pandemic, with more people contracting COVID-19 as the days pass. While many have recovered, some have died from complications of the illness. These are the names of some notable figures from Hollywood and the media that we have lost.

View In Gallery

Celebrities Who Have Died From the Coronavirus (Photos)

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