The Intersection: Diverse Folx Converse Season 2, Episode 10 with our special episode with Bennett Kaspar-Williams, "Making Trans Positive Media: Bringing Our Personal Lives to Work and the Screen."
About a year ago, Netflix, one of the leading streaming media companies, destroyed its employee-first work culture policy and produced transphobic content. Both of which caused a mass exodus of some top talent, the distrust of their audiences, and the company's stock to tank.
Media and tech companies had looked up to Netflix for its non-hierarchical business model, cutting-edge content, and commitment to an almost idyllic transparency with their employees.
What happened?
One glaring problem was producing transphobic content that could fuel an already volatile situation for trans people. The fact that Netflix decided to go back on its word to consider its employees' voices. And failed to include the Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) that have been assembled previously to maintain the integrity of their values and content. And to support and protect their communities.
Earlier this year, I met Bennett Kaspar-Williams, labor relations and inclusivity, and we started to work on "Making Trans Positive Media: Bringing Our Personal Lives to Work and the Screen."
Bennett was at the center of the Netflix walkouts over transphobic content, the most public being Dave Chappelle's The Closer. He also served as vice president of the Netflix trans ERG and Chair for the Trans* Content Review Pod. Bennett now works at Amazon Studios, where he is starting a new trans ERG among other projects.
Our intersection rests between trans positive media and labor relations, especially of trans employees. Especially when we are talking about a media company who needed to do better in both of these regards to better represent and support the trans community. At work and on the screen.
💙In this podcast, we talk about trans positive media. What is it? What are some examples now? And why is seeing ourselves in today's and historic narratives so important?
💗We talk about ways to keep encouraging and supporting this content.
🤍We discuss what happened precisely with Netflix to cause their radical shift in company culture. And the threats to trans people irl when transphobic content is produced.
💖And end with ways to do better for media companies to support trans-positive content and employees.
Bennett Kaspar-Williams serves as Corporate Counsel for Labor Relations at Amazon Studios. Previously worked as Counsel for Labor Relations at Netflix, where I also served as Vice President of the Trans Employee Resource Group and Chair for the Trans* Content Review Pod.
For more information on our
Special Guest Bennett-Kaspar Williams, check out his shop:
www.TransistShop.com
And Instagram account:
@bennettonpurpose
Dr. Shannon Wong Lerner (she/they) is a cross-continental scholar, thought leader, keynote speaker, and DEI & communication skills trainer whose work spans across the United States, Europe, and Asia. They are the host of The Intersection: Diverse Folx Converse, programming made by and for QPoC and GNC individuals and Communication for Diverse People.
https://drshannonwl.com
@dr_shannon_wl
The Intersection is a not-for-profit project made by and for queer people of color and gender non-conforming and trans people that relies on donations. Currently for this year, we have only reached $540 out of our $8,000 goal! If you like what you hear, please consider donating. Even $10 would be great to add to our production fees. See our GoFundMe here: https://gofund.me/9476c47f
Theme Music created by:
L’envol Du Papillon by Patchworker f.k.a. [friendzoned] | https://soundcloud.com/patchworker
Music promoted by https://www.free-stock-music.com
Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/...
