Paramount Fires President of TV Unit
July 19 2018 - 10:51PM
Dow Jones News
By Joe Flint
The president of Viacom Inc.'s Paramount Television unit was
fired Thursday for inappropriate remarks.
Amy Powell, who ran the unit for five years, was let go because
of comments "inconsistent with our company's values," said
Paramount Pictures Chairman and Chief Executive Jim Gianopulos in a
memo to the studio.
The firing came after an investigation by Paramount's human
resources and legal team this week after complaints were made about
Ms. Powell's conduct, according to the memo. "It is imperative that
we uphold our values and ensure that all employees feel safe and
included in the workplace," Mr. Gianopulos said.
While the memo doesn't disclose what Ms. Powell said, a person
familiar with the matter said the remarks in question were "racial
in nature." Specifically she made remarks on a conference call
about black women being angry and about black children being raised
by a single parent.
A person on the call reported the incident to human resources
and it was confirmed by others on the call, but Ms. Powell denied
it occurred, the person familiar with the matter said.
The call was in relation to a TV reboot of the movie "The First
Wives Club" that Paramount Television is making for its sister
cable channel, Paramount Network.
Ms. Powell said she couldn't comment and hung up when reached by
The Wall Street Journal.
The high-profile firing of Ms. Powell is the latest over
inappropriate remarks in American corporations. Last week Papa
John's International Inc. Chairman John Schnatter resigned after
using a racial slur, and last month Netflix Inc. fired its head of
communications, Jonathan Friedland, for the same offense.
Paramount's TV division is seen as a crucial engine for reviving
the studio, which has struggled in recent years. Once one of the
top studios, Paramount had all but abandoned the television
business when its parent, Viacom, spun off CBS Corp. more than a
decade ago. In 2013, Paramount re-entered the TV business with Ms.
Powell at the helm.
While still a relatively small player compared with AT&T
Inc.'s Warner Bros., Walt Disney Co. and 21st Century Fox,
Paramount Television has had some recent producing successes,
including the Netflix teen drama "13 Reasons Why" and "The
Alienist" on TNT.
News of Ms. Powell's firing was first reported by The Hollywood
Reporter.
In his memo, Mr. Gianopulos said the studio will immediately
look for Ms. Powell's successor.
Write to Joe Flint at joe.flint@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 19, 2018 22:36 ET (02:36 GMT)
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