The murder of George Floyd created a chain reaction, created a voice against racism and the voice was loud enough to reach the big and small screens. Prome.Videos added disclaimers before some TV shows and NBC straight up removed certain episodes of some shows.
Netflix tried to use the incident to spread awareness in their series ‘Explained’ which was produced by Vox Media. They wanted to create a series of videos that would run alongside movies or television shows that feature racism or stereotypical events.
Vox put its resources into this, but with time Netflix changed their aim and intention. With the changing political scenario, Netflix faced backlash. Though they first promised the producers that they would piece the short videos together and stream a lengthy episode of ‘Explaner on Race’, later they backed off from the project. No comments by Netflix were followed by this incident.
Now, some advertising and marketing companies highlighted the backlash they received for highlighting social issues like race, sexuality, and gender identity. Some even faced the comment ‘Gone too far into the good’.
A week back Netflix announced that its head of inclusion strategy is stepping down and that isn’t the first time a company did that. Warner Bros. Discovery did the same. These decisions just prove that some companies are just not willing to invest in DE&I activities. And this can be caused by multiple factors including backlash, financial pressure, and even image protection.
