Dozens of contract writers were shown the door after 150 full time employees were axed. The job cuts were announced. Many of those writers were part of the large-scale diversity communications initiatives, and they said that the struggling streaming giant had left those departments, like the staffers who used to work there, gutted. The Black community-focused Strong Black Lead, Latinx-focused Con Todo, Asian American-focused Golden, and the LGBTQ-focused Most were among the contractors who got the ax Tuesday. Multiple writers were laid off from Tudum, which had already seen a prior round of layoffs. Golden had only been introduced in January, but the platforms were appreciated by their select communities in a short time. The Hollywood Reporter praised Strong Black Lead for allowing Black voices to amplify content that appealed to the community while at the same time bringing conversations about Black-focused media into the mainstream. Business Insider said the figure was between 60 and 70. Some of the people who were laid off were told about it. Others said they didn't know about the layoffs until they found out their Slack accounts had been cut off.
The company will continue to operate those social accounts with writers from those communities. The number of contract employees let go is not a total, but cuts are affecting the breadth of the company's social media channels and not just the four. We are investing a lot in our social channels.
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In a previous statement given to Gizmodo about the layoffs, the company said they were working hard to support the cut employees.
The creation of these diversity teams was championed by the previous head of global audiences, brand and editorial management. He left the company earlier this month, and on May 17 he lamented the end of the teams he built from nothing.
Some people spoke about how they were able to accomplish writing for the company and promote content that appealed to groups that have struggled to be represented in media.
Several of its planned animation ventures were axed, as well as 70 part time workers from its animation studio. The book adaptation of Wings of Fire and the animated adaptation of Dr. Ibram X. Kendi's Antiracist Baby were among the projects that were being planned. The decision was not about cost, according to the company.
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