After launching its first diversity report in January, Netflix also published the results of a study of its films and series ordered in the U.S. in 2018 and 2019. While the previous report covered the composition of Netflix employees, today’s findings look to your on-screen talent screen, as well as the producers, writers and directors behind your shows. The study was conducted by the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative at the request of Netflix and indicates that while the company’s programs have progressed towards inclusion, there are still improvements to be made. According to the executive summary, “racial / ethnic representation varies by group” and “LGBTQ and disabled people are rare.”
To help make these improvements, Netflix today announced a Creative Equity Fund that will invest $ 100 million over five years. It will work with outside organizations that co-CEO and content director Ted Sarandos said in a statement had “a strong track record of establishing underrepresented communities for success in the TV and film industries”. The fund will also go towards creating “tailored Netflix programs that will help us identify, train and provide professional placement for emerging talent around the world.”
It is no coincidence that Netflix decided to publish reports on its diversity within its “employee population” and across its productions this year. Last September, when the company released the first teaser for its teen drama series Great Armywriter Ming Peiffer tweeted that she and three other black writers had left the series for “racist exploitation and abuse”. She said the showrunner and creator called Netflix HR about “the writer Black in the room for cutting his hair”. In a subsequent tweet, Peiffer said that “Netflix was fully aware of everything and did nothing but hire more writers to lend their names to the show.”
It’s crazy. Netflix was fully aware of everything and did nothing but hire more colored writers to lend their names to the show. So, we had the audacity to get in touch 2 years later, anticipating the launch, to “listen to our concerns”, but we told you what happened 2 years ago!
– Ming Peiffer (@mingpdynasty) September 2, 2020
Publicly, Netflix does not appear to have addressed these allegations directly, and Engadget contacted for comment. Ordering a study of the diversity and representation of the people who work for the company may be a first step, but it is not the same as recognizing the mistakes that may have been made.
Overall, the results show that Netflix has actually made some improvements in the past two years, although c. It is also important to note that, as the 2020 content was not included in the study, there may be areas of growth (or continuously underrepresented communities) that were not covered. One thing that the executive summary of the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative states is that “in relation to its industry peers, this result means that, for Netflix, inclusion is more than a marketing slogan and serves to guide decision making “.
The report noted that Netflix has made progress towards inclusion “for women on screen and behind the scenes, for black and creative casts and for black women in leading and leading roles”. But he also highlighted “where accelerated change is needed, particularly for specific racial / ethnic groups, the LGBTQ community and people with disabilities”. The study measured 22 inclusion indicators and, of all of them, found that “Netflix movies and series improved slightly significantly from 2018 to 2019 by 19 metrics.” The executive summary provides a comprehensive set of data (and color charts and graphs) that go into more detail, so take a look here to learn more.