Netflix’s CEO has apologized for how his comments regarding the Dave Chappelle special may have been misinterpreted by certain employees, but he has not changed his mind.
According to TMZ, Ted Sarandos shared some additional comments on the controversy that has been developing for the past two weeks, admitting that he “screwed up” in his leaked email to Netflix employees, in which he defended Dave Chappelles, “The Closer” while downplaying transphobic concerns.
He stated that he should’ve started the emails with humanity and acknowledged that a group of individuals was hurting as a result of Dave’s stand-up.
In terms of what Sarandos believes he would do differently, he says he would probably add that material may have real-world consequences, whether good or bad.
Despite this, he is sticking to his decision: that “The Closer” does not constitute hate speech, does not create real-world harm, and will not be removed. So Ted is apologizing for how he conveyed the sentiment rather than the sentiment itself.
He said that their company must cater to a diverse range of customers with different preferences and perspectives than some of his employees and that this is something they must embrace.
Sarandos also stated that any content that has a call to action to cause harm or remove safeguards from a protected group would cross the line, but he believes Dave didn’t do so with ‘Closer,’ regardless of the fact that some at Netflix disagree.
There are still some people angry about it; some employees plan to go on strike on Wednesday in direct protest of Netflix’s choice to keep the special running.
