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1k Netflix employees threaten work stoppage over Dave Chappelle

92 points by elgernon 5y ago

mindcrime 5y ago
Fire all thousand of them and call it good.
tmsh 5y ago
The issue is the poor taste in not defending those who are struggling to defend themselves. That shows lack of leadership and meaningless principles. Netflix employees rightly recognized that Sarandos’ statement had no real principles behind it, but was purely based on appeasing popular creators.
deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
arthurcolle 5y ago
If you don't like the company's decisions, you should stop working for the company - easy enough. I feel like the social justice brigade needs to seriously lighten up - maybe don't watch content that sets you off so easily? Just like everyone has had to do since.. the invention of television and other broadcast media?
- dragonwriter 5y ago
  > If you don't like the company's decisions, you should stop working for the company - easy enough. That's exactly the threat here, but with an opportunity for the company to alter its decision making if it wants the labor.
  - arthurcolle 5y ago
    Well I certainly hope Netflix doesn't capitulate - maybe they can play up the controversy in the most sigma fashion possible and sign Dave Chappelle for another 10 specials to "respond" to the controversy.
    - hhmc 5y ago
      Did you seriously unironically advocate for being a 'sigma male'?
      - arthurcolle 5y ago
        It was meant as a joke, but those videos are pretty hilarious.
        analognoise 5y ago
        If incidents like this have taught us anything, nobody can take a joke anymore. Everyone is like a big exposed nerve, and also somehow an adult.
  - version_five 5y ago
    What would you say if Netflix called their bluff and just fired all the people that walked out? This reminds me more of the student protests we used to see, where they wanted to walk out of classes or miss exams but also wanted special treatment so they didn't fail the class. I've got no problem with not working at a place whose values you dont agree with, but I see this kind of action (and similar things at other tech companies) more as expecting your employer to pay you to undermine them. I could be wrong.
    - arthurcolle 5y ago
      > What would you say if Netflix called their bluff and just fired all the people that walked out? That would be a pretty awesome outcome - Netflix shouldn't have to change their programming (which is generally largely uncontroversial for the most part - I mean when is the last time they truly pushed the envelope? Maybe the OATS STUDIOS and original Black Mirror content?) to satisfy the permanently dissatisfied members of these new-age social movements that attempt to force people to say things that they don't agree with for fear of getting 'cancelled' among other outcomes that are socially negative.
      - LurkingPenguin 5y ago
        > That would be a pretty awesome outcome... Even more awesome if they filmed it and had Dave Chappelle standing outside to roast them as they were escorted out.
    - bawolff 5y ago
      > What would you say if Netflix called their bluff and just fired all the people that walked out? They work at FAANG. Pretty sure they'll be able to get new jobs very quickly. I suspect people involved with work stoppages who aren't protected via a union are keenly aware of the possibility of being fired and have deemed it worth the risk. > This reminds me more of the student protests we used to see, where they wanted to walk out of classes or miss exams but also wanted special treatment so they didn't fail the class. Umm, why not compare it to just a normal labour duspute strike action? This is literally a text book example of the type of action organized labour takes when its mad about something.
  - rsj_hn 5y ago
    Pretty sure the Netflix would rather be rid of those who have totalitarian tendencies than to be rid Chappelle, given that their mission as an entertainment company is undermined by this type of censorship. There's a long line of people who can provide the same labor to Netflix without the hysteria, so a parting of ways would be a pareto improving outcome.
  - kcplate 5y ago
    It’s a pointless gesture designed to be more about sending a virtue signal than any impact at all. Dave’s been paid, a work stoppage won’t stop eyeballs and ears from hearing the comedy (it’s all over YouTube), and Netflix will not lose a statistically significant number of subscribers over this. To be honest, I’m sure that there will be no interruption to the streaming service at all. And the next series of specials that Chappelle sells will have an increase in viewership because of the controversy these activist employees and stupid media outrage has created from this one. Netflix knows this and will want a chance at being the provider of that content.
- pengaru 5y ago
  It arguably makes sense for it to be made abundantly clear what caused a mass exodus vs. a pile of disorganized but disillusioned employees quietly parting ways piecemeal, if part of your goals is to actually effect change.
- gfodor 5y ago
  Lightening up is the one thing people like this are unable to do.
- themodelplumber 5y ago
  > easy enough Do you mean that it's easy to say "I quit," or that it's easy to kiss your next paychecks goodbye with no other approved recourse, despite the fact that you were employed by a company that you and thousands of others saw as perpetuating injustices toward a minority?
- chuckee 5y ago
  > If you don't like the company's decisions, you should stop working for the company - easy enough. While I don't agree with the aims of the employees in question, I should point out that unions came about because your advice does not work. The only way to stand a chance against organized capital is with organized labor. See https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28603398 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28603398
  - stjohnswarts 5y ago
    Sure but you have to get enough organized labor. This is a niche topic and I'm guessing the other 99% of netflix don't care enough about it to get fired. Organized labor generally appeared because of universal bad working conditions, pay, voice in governance, etc. Not really because of less popular items like LGBQ concerns about a comedian's opinions.
- ekianjo 5y ago
  > e the social justice brigade needs to seriously lighten up AS long as their tactics keep working (and they do since everybody is submitting to their will), I don't see that changing.
  - emerged 5y ago
    Makes me wonder if there are any objective metrics whether the tactics are working more or less as time marches on. I’d imagine the contagion of woke continues to spread like any other, but by now most of us have been exposed and developed antibodies.
- tonfreed 5y ago
  You seem to be under the impression they actually watched it.
yuppie_scum 5y ago
They can use the squid game money to hire their replacements.
2OEH8eoCRo0 5y ago
Time to check for openings at Netflix. I'll gladly take their place and I'm sure that I'm not alone.
- smoldesu 5y ago
  Hit my line Netflix recruiters, I know you're watching :)
- silisili 5y ago
  LOL, I just had the same thought. I'm not college aged anymore, or a 10x developer, but I won't whine about content and make threats, that's for sure.
  - Igelau 5y ago
    1X Developer, but I won't freak out if someone says "master branch"!
    - xdennis 5y ago
      At my work place we switched to `main`, but we still have databases called `xyz-slave01`...
      - Igelau 5y ago
        Lately I prefer "sovereign/vassal"
- throw_m239339 5y ago
  Hi, Netflix, I will consider any work opportunity in your fantastic business as it looks like a lot of positions will be available shortly. I'm 100% mission focused and committed to technology and nothing else.
m0zg 5y ago
"Cuties" was fine, but a stand-up skit is where they draw the line. Glad they have their priorities straightened out.
- Infinitesimus 5y ago
  To be fair, cuties had a lot of controversy around it too. As with such matters, that's long forgotten in the world of twitter and people have moved on to the next thing. This too will pass.
  - m0zg 5y ago
    No "walkouts" or resignations though. I did cancel my Netflix membership - I can't and won't support normalization of pedophilia.
    - Gortal278 5y ago
      Did you watch the movie? Or cancel based on headline reading/twitter comments?
      - stjohnswarts 5y ago
        exactly, I watched enough to know it wasn't my cup of tea, but I don't think there was anything in there that was going to cause a wave of pedophilia like the pearl clutchers thought.
      - m0zg 5y ago
        I don't need to watch 11 year old girls crotches to find sexualization of prepubescent children strongly objectionable.
        dragonwriter 5y ago
        If you haven't watched it, on what basis do you assert that the characterization of it as “sexualization of prepubescent children” is at all valid? I haven't watched it, and have no specific opinion, but I certainly do know that many times when I’ve seen characterization of objectionable content in media it wasn't supported by a reasonable viewing of the media.
sxp 5y ago
For those who haven't seen the special, the core of the controversy appears to be Chappelle mourning his friend, Daphne Dorman. She was a transgender standup comedian who opened for Chappelle and defended his comedy against the Twitter mob. She killed herself shortly after she was canceled by the mob and Chappelle set up a trust fund for her daughter. Chappelle paid tribute to her in his special, but he did it in an offensive way. But given their relationship, the tribute was probably something she would have approved of and her family has defended Chappelle's tribute: https://deadline.com/2021/10/dave-chappelle-the-closer-defended-by-sisters-his-trans-friend-daphne-dorman-1234853511/ https://deadline.com/2021/10/dave-chappelle-the-closer-defen... Most of the outrage appears to come from people who haven't actually watched the special and are taking Chappelle's quotes about racism and LGBT issues out of context.
- andrew_ 5y ago
  > but he did it in an offensive way I find this part of the statement to be a falsehood. He did it in a comedic way, which was part of the point he was trying to make. See: https://nypost.com/2021/10/15/airplane-creator-slams-joy-killing-threat-twitter-9-percent/ https://nypost.com/2021/10/15/airplane-creator-slams-joy-kil...
  - whiddershins 5y ago
    For me, calling comedy offensive isn’t even an insult. I am always prepared to be offended by comedy, and if I am, I will keep watching, but only if it is funny enough.
    - smoldesu 5y ago
      My mom used to tell me a story about how she watched Pulp Fiction in theaters when it came out. Some of the scenes were so gross, offensive, horrific and bland that they drove the audience away in waves, until she and her friends were the only ones still there, laughing at how one film could make so many people upset.
  - falcolas 5y ago
droopyEyelids 5y ago
Does anyone know what the demands are? Very confusing, it was Chapelle's final special with Netflix, and it has already aired. What would the 1k employees like?
- ekianjo 5y ago
  > it has already aired. What would the 1k employees like? They want it removed from the platform altogether
- doopy1 5y ago
  I think they want it to be removed.
andrew_ 5y ago
I'll be watching this with interest, hoping that Netflix leadership follows recent pushback against the woke mob. We can no longer tolerate sanitizing the web of the things a small minority are offended by. This was the message that Chapelle delivered, and this is peak irony.
vlovich123 5y ago
Why does it seem like the controversial statements that are being picked out are what is being fixated on? They seem to intentionally ignore the surrounding context of the message he’s actually trying to convey.
- andrew_ 5y ago
  Such is the psychology of the outrage machine and the continuously angry and offended operators.
- psyc 5y ago
  The more they take out of context, the more material they have to call out. It’s not like their follower-allies are going to mind that it was taken out of context.
nimbius 5y ago
Unpopular opinion on hn here but Dave's trans skit hinges on his audience not knowing enough about trans people for him to get away with creative character assassination. He openly condemns their argument against Rowling as goal-posting make believe and in doing so lends his approval to her documented and open transphobia. If anything it should be an indictment of how he treats his audience in 2021. There are plenty of hillarious trans jokes to be made but He needs to do a better job of reading the room. When you punch down in your sets, its bullying not satire.
- SuoDuanDao 5y ago
  Perhaps JK made some genuinely hurtful comments I'm unaware of, but given the ones that were quoted in a pearl-clutching context I'll believe that iff I see it. There is a school of thought that seeks to treat all trans-gendered or gender dysphoric people as a monolithic group who have only one correct course of action. The irony of that, given what gay-rights activists were working for within living memory, is so sharp as to be painful.
- seoulmetro 5y ago
  It's okay to be trans-phobic. It's not okay to attack a person because they are trans. Huge differences.
Proven 5y ago
As a paying Netflix customer I kindly request all them be fired ASAP.
vjancik 5y ago
Damn, I need to update my resume quick!
analognoise 5y ago
People are so lamely political these days, it's hard not to see this as slacktivism. I hope the internet virtue signaling echo chamber dies off already, and all these people get fired. Then at least they can see themselves as heroes in their "I'm the main character" stories about how "politically active" they were when they write their books.
lkey 5y ago
The missing context in this article is that two trans employees were suspended for attending a zoom meeting they were linked to by a director. One of those employees had written a twitter thread critical of the special on their personal account. The second thing to note is they fired an organizer of this protest claiming that they leaked how well this special did (broke even basically) just a couple days ago. This is obviously going to have a chilling effect within the company no matter what the intent of the special or the executives was. More broadly, Chappelle seems to have a lot of empathy for his trans friend, but the actual effect seems to have been a fresh supply of TERF ammunition for the next few weeks. The 'discourse' around this is pure poison, and he probably could have predicted this based on how the last special went.
- InvertedRhodium 5y ago
  > The missing context in this article is that two trans employees were suspended for attending a zoom meeting they were linked to by a director Were they invited to the meeting, or did they just acquire a link? Just because I find your conference call number doesn't give me any inherent right to sit in on it.
  - lkey 5y ago
    Can you imagine being suspended for simply entering the wrong call at the meeting's start? I'd be extra-shocked if something like that happened at my workplace, which is similar in size to Netflix. Regardless, since you asked, Netflix backpedalled and reinstated her in writing. https://twitter.com/RainofTerra/status/1448097310026747908 https://twitter.com/RainofTerra/status/1448097310026747908 Speaking for myself, when a director who is also attending a meeting sends me a zoom link, that's an invitation to attend. Edit: More context, it was just a friggin stream: https://twitter.com/RainofTerra/status/1449667391865044994 https://twitter.com/RainofTerra/status/1449667391865044994
    - arthur5005 5y ago
      The person suspended (and then reinstated) intentionally crashed the meeting, and the person let go, leaked the amount paid to David for the special, which is the #1 no no at Netflix, given their business works primarily on information asymmetry. It’s the one thing you definitely shouldn’t do at Netflix, and they knew that.
mandmandam 5y ago
> repeatedly dismisses the concept of a gender identity altogether Er, no he didn't. And the 'Team TERF' thing has at least 7 or 8 minutes of context around it.
deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
TeeMassive 5y ago
Unless it's a substantial number of techies and developers, this will be mostly a moot effort.
anonu 5y ago
Its really tough being a comedian. Generally, in society there are lines drawn over which you must not cross. Comedians typically get to push those boundaries under the guise of comedy or free-thinking or equal-opportunity racism or bigotry. Generally, I am totally supportive of that as it is thought-provoking and conversation inducing. It's better to bring uncomfortable subjects out into the open and make fun of them rather than have them be taboo subjects that should not be discussed. So ultimately, the meta view on all this is, yes, lets have a conversation. Maybe its a heated one, but lets not "cancel" people while were at it. Let the free-markets determine who should be cancelled.
- danShumway 5y ago
  > Let the free-markets determine who should be cancelled. What would that look like though? I think there's a somewhat valid conversation to be had about cancel culture, but this point comes up over and over, and I'm constantly wondering: if people criticizing speech in public places like Twitter isn't the free market, and Netflix employees collectively advocating that they don't want to host the speech isn't the free market, and if users boycotting or voting with their wallets isn't the free market, and if advertisers pushing for higher standards on the platforms they're advertising on isn't the free market, and if platform-holders and publishers deciding what content they want to promote isn't the free market, then what is the free market? When we talk about cancel culture, a lot of the mechanisms of canceling use free market actions; freedom of association, the right to criticize, the right to filter and to share filters with other people, the right to choose how we spend our money and time. And it's valid to look at the free market of speech and say that sometimes it's overly harsh or that it censors the wrong people or that it can be intolerant, but I don't see how it's possible to simultaneously say that the marketplace of ideas is the correct way to sort out good and bad speech, and also that people being mean on Twitter or calling for boycotts is fundamentally the wrong way to tackle conflict. What do people think the marketplace of ideas is, and how should it act? When the marketplace of ideas deems an idea unpopular or bad, should it still be given equal weight and equal investment and promotion alongside other ideas, even though the marketplace doesn't want it? That's not how the real economic marketplace works; in the economic marketplace if you can't convince people to buy your product, then your company dies and investors stop giving you money and putting you on store shelves. Nobody says that it's a violation of the free market if people badmouth a company online and stores stop carrying their products as a result. Nobody argues that I'm "canceling" Facebook when I tell people to stop using it, or when I argue that Facebook's future VR products are likely to be bad just by virtue of being made by Facebook. What's different about the marketplace of ideas? Is it that Netflix has too much power and it's a pseudo-monopoly over entertainment? I can buy that argument for situations like Facebook or the Apple app store, but I don't really buy it for Netflix.
busymom0 5y ago
The TV Show "Billions" had a line: "What’s the point of having f you money if you never say f you?" That is what I need to see. Does Netflix have a spine to fight back against such nonsense?
deleted 5y ago
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Vaderv 5y ago
What about freedom is speech. This is ridiculous.
malwarebytess 5y ago
The poison is deep. China and Europe are going to eat the USA alive, lol.
- xdennis 5y ago
  China, maybe. Europe is just delayed America. Whatever happens there gets eventually copied in Europe. Rammstein put it best: "we're all living in Amerika".
rationalfaith 5y ago
LGBT+ is imploding. Obviously they'll always be in the minority. Not to mention their biology is anti whatever they want to be. They'll never taste peace and so are lashing out. This is not good for their cause long term. I don't care what you do in your private life, but you're clearly not okay. Lashing out at other people's views even though don't impact you in any way shape or form. Lashing out would be one thing but trying to cancel their livelihood. With all due respect, FU.
rc2634 5y ago
Corporations will need to start looking at the tweets of applicants to make sure they don’t hire the woke activist types. They are becoming a nuisance in the corporate world.
steve76 5y ago
[dead]
arthur5005 5y ago
So what’s the demand of the walkout? That they cancel the Dave Chapelle special? A black comedian who struggled through accusations being a “mentally ill black crackhead” when he walked away from 50 million dollars? Doesn’t that just prove his point about the double standard and culture of victimhood and success in the trans movement? This all seems to highlight the problem he’s bringing to the forefront.
terminatornet 5y ago
There's a point in the new special where Dave brings up the anti-transgender bathroom bill that was passed and then repealed in North Carolina. When he mentions it, an audience member enthusiastically cheers for it and Dave has to immediately clarify that he's against it. If the points you're trying to make are so unclear that people are enthusiastically cheering for anti-trans laws, you may not be anti-trans, but you're certainly wearing an anti-trans uniform.
- xpaqui 5y ago
  Yes, we shouldn't allow people to have the wrong opinions. If these people use Dave as the beacon for anti-trans opinions, the person who created a trust fund for the daughter of trans person who killed herself, maybe they aren't that good at anti-trans, just saying.
  - terminatornet 5y ago
    That's a good start, hopefully he'll be using some of that $60 million he's made from his netflix specials to support other trans people, not just 1 person he knew
    - xpaqui 5y ago
      He's not helping her family because she was trans, hes helping because they had a human connection. This, this is what I don't agree, the myopic idea where people deserve help or spite depending on some tribal characteristic.
pvm3 5y ago
If anyone else is wondering, the 1k number reported comes from a source[1] not directly linked in this article. [1]: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/digital/netflix-dave-chappelle-walkout-1235031048/ https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/digital/netflix-d... > "At least one thousand Netflix employees are expected to participate in a virtual walkout to protest Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos’ recent comments in support of Dave Chappelle’s latest special, The Closer, according to a current staffer who spoke with The Hollywood Reporter." This should probably be the main article linked in this thread. Anyways according to wikipedia Netflix has just over 12k employees, so 1k+ walkout would be 8%+ walkout which would be pretty significant.
foxes 5y ago
Stop paying attention to Twitter.
StanislavPetrov 5y ago
The sourcing here seems incredibly thin. Who says 1,000 employees are walking out? Variety links to another Variety article as a source for this statement, which in turn links to a Verge article as the source. The Verge article says nothing about 1,000 employees walking out, and contains only a single, anonymous claim that they characterize as,"a leader of the trans ERG in an internal organizing message." It would be interesting to see how many actual Netflix employees are outraged enough by a comedy routine to walk out on their jobs. https://www.theverge.com/2021/10/12/22723592/netflix-trans-employees-walkout-statements-ceo https://www.theverge.com/2021/10/12/22723592/netflix-trans-e...
emerged 5y ago
Excellent opportunity for Netflix to chop some worthless heads without picking up an axe.
emerged 5y ago
Is there any way to financially short sell woke?
rndmind 5y ago
What is this, hackernews... TMZ?!
socrates1998 5y ago
I guarantee that most of these people didn't watch the special. They are just confirming Dave's message. Oh well. Dave will be fine. Netflix will be fine. I wish their was more uproar over other stuff that's on Netflix that is way more offensive, in my opinion.

92 points by elgernon 5y ago

Fire all thousand of them and call it good.

tmsh 5y ago

The issue is the poor taste in not defending those who are struggling to defend themselves. That shows lack of leadership and meaningless principles. Netflix employees rightly recognized that Sarandos’ statement had no real principles behind it, but was purely based on appeasing popular creators.

deleted 5y ago

[deleted]

arthurcolle 5y ago

If you don't like the company's decisions, you should stop working for the company - easy enough. I feel like the social justice brigade needs to seriously lighten up - maybe don't watch content that sets you off so easily? Just like everyone has had to do since.. the invention of television and other broadcast media?

dragonwriter 5y ago
> If you don't like the company's decisions, you should stop working for the company - easy enough. That's exactly the threat here, but with an opportunity for the company to alter its decision making if it wants the labor.
- arthurcolle 5y ago
  Well I certainly hope Netflix doesn't capitulate - maybe they can play up the controversy in the most sigma fashion possible and sign Dave Chappelle for another 10 specials to "respond" to the controversy.
  - hhmc 5y ago
    Did you seriously unironically advocate for being a 'sigma male'?
    - arthurcolle 5y ago
      It was meant as a joke, but those videos are pretty hilarious.
      - analognoise 5y ago
        If incidents like this have taught us anything, nobody can take a joke anymore. Everyone is like a big exposed nerve, and also somehow an adult.
- version_five 5y ago
  What would you say if Netflix called their bluff and just fired all the people that walked out? This reminds me more of the student protests we used to see, where they wanted to walk out of classes or miss exams but also wanted special treatment so they didn't fail the class. I've got no problem with not working at a place whose values you dont agree with, but I see this kind of action (and similar things at other tech companies) more as expecting your employer to pay you to undermine them. I could be wrong.
  - arthurcolle 5y ago
    > What would you say if Netflix called their bluff and just fired all the people that walked out? That would be a pretty awesome outcome - Netflix shouldn't have to change their programming (which is generally largely uncontroversial for the most part - I mean when is the last time they truly pushed the envelope? Maybe the OATS STUDIOS and original Black Mirror content?) to satisfy the permanently dissatisfied members of these new-age social movements that attempt to force people to say things that they don't agree with for fear of getting 'cancelled' among other outcomes that are socially negative.
    - LurkingPenguin 5y ago
      > That would be a pretty awesome outcome... Even more awesome if they filmed it and had Dave Chappelle standing outside to roast them as they were escorted out.
  - bawolff 5y ago
    > What would you say if Netflix called their bluff and just fired all the people that walked out? They work at FAANG. Pretty sure they'll be able to get new jobs very quickly. I suspect people involved with work stoppages who aren't protected via a union are keenly aware of the possibility of being fired and have deemed it worth the risk. > This reminds me more of the student protests we used to see, where they wanted to walk out of classes or miss exams but also wanted special treatment so they didn't fail the class. Umm, why not compare it to just a normal labour duspute strike action? This is literally a text book example of the type of action organized labour takes when its mad about something.
- rsj_hn 5y ago
  Pretty sure the Netflix would rather be rid of those who have totalitarian tendencies than to be rid Chappelle, given that their mission as an entertainment company is undermined by this type of censorship. There's a long line of people who can provide the same labor to Netflix without the hysteria, so a parting of ways would be a pareto improving outcome.
- kcplate 5y ago
  It’s a pointless gesture designed to be more about sending a virtue signal than any impact at all. Dave’s been paid, a work stoppage won’t stop eyeballs and ears from hearing the comedy (it’s all over YouTube), and Netflix will not lose a statistically significant number of subscribers over this. To be honest, I’m sure that there will be no interruption to the streaming service at all. And the next series of specials that Chappelle sells will have an increase in viewership because of the controversy these activist employees and stupid media outrage has created from this one. Netflix knows this and will want a chance at being the provider of that content.
pengaru 5y ago
It arguably makes sense for it to be made abundantly clear what caused a mass exodus vs. a pile of disorganized but disillusioned employees quietly parting ways piecemeal, if part of your goals is to actually effect change.
gfodor 5y ago
Lightening up is the one thing people like this are unable to do.
themodelplumber 5y ago
> easy enough Do you mean that it's easy to say "I quit," or that it's easy to kiss your next paychecks goodbye with no other approved recourse, despite the fact that you were employed by a company that you and thousands of others saw as perpetuating injustices toward a minority?
chuckee 5y ago
> If you don't like the company's decisions, you should stop working for the company - easy enough. While I don't agree with the aims of the employees in question, I should point out that unions came about because your advice does not work. The only way to stand a chance against organized capital is with organized labor. See https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28603398 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28603398
- stjohnswarts 5y ago
  Sure but you have to get enough organized labor. This is a niche topic and I'm guessing the other 99% of netflix don't care enough about it to get fired. Organized labor generally appeared because of universal bad working conditions, pay, voice in governance, etc. Not really because of less popular items like LGBQ concerns about a comedian's opinions.
ekianjo 5y ago
> e the social justice brigade needs to seriously lighten up AS long as their tactics keep working (and they do since everybody is submitting to their will), I don't see that changing.
- emerged 5y ago
  Makes me wonder if there are any objective metrics whether the tactics are working more or less as time marches on. I’d imagine the contagion of woke continues to spread like any other, but by now most of us have been exposed and developed antibodies.
tonfreed 5y ago
You seem to be under the impression they actually watched it.

yuppie_scum 5y ago

They can use the squid game money to hire their replacements.

2OEH8eoCRo0 5y ago

Time to check for openings at Netflix. I'll gladly take their place and I'm sure that I'm not alone.

smoldesu 5y ago
Hit my line Netflix recruiters, I know you're watching :)
silisili 5y ago
LOL, I just had the same thought. I'm not college aged anymore, or a 10x developer, but I won't whine about content and make threats, that's for sure.
- Igelau 5y ago
  1X Developer, but I won't freak out if someone says "master branch"!
  - xdennis 5y ago
    At my work place we switched to `main`, but we still have databases called `xyz-slave01`...
    - Igelau 5y ago
      Lately I prefer "sovereign/vassal"
throw_m239339 5y ago
Hi, Netflix, I will consider any work opportunity in your fantastic business as it looks like a lot of positions will be available shortly. I'm 100% mission focused and committed to technology and nothing else.

m0zg 5y ago

"Cuties" was fine, but a stand-up skit is where they draw the line. Glad they have their priorities straightened out.

Infinitesimus 5y ago
To be fair, cuties had a lot of controversy around it too. As with such matters, that's long forgotten in the world of twitter and people have moved on to the next thing. This too will pass.
- m0zg 5y ago
  No "walkouts" or resignations though. I did cancel my Netflix membership - I can't and won't support normalization of pedophilia.
  - Gortal278 5y ago
    Did you watch the movie? Or cancel based on headline reading/twitter comments?
    - stjohnswarts 5y ago
      exactly, I watched enough to know it wasn't my cup of tea, but I don't think there was anything in there that was going to cause a wave of pedophilia like the pearl clutchers thought.
    - m0zg 5y ago
      I don't need to watch 11 year old girls crotches to find sexualization of prepubescent children strongly objectionable.
      - dragonwriter 5y ago
        If you haven't watched it, on what basis do you assert that the characterization of it as “sexualization of prepubescent children” is at all valid? I haven't watched it, and have no specific opinion, but I certainly do know that many times when I’ve seen characterization of objectionable content in media it wasn't supported by a reasonable viewing of the media.

sxp 5y ago

For those who haven't seen the special, the core of the controversy appears to be Chappelle mourning his friend, Daphne Dorman. She was a transgender standup comedian who opened for Chappelle and defended his comedy against the Twitter mob. She killed herself shortly after she was canceled by the mob and Chappelle set up a trust fund for her daughter. Chappelle paid tribute to her in his special, but he did it in an offensive way. But given their relationship, the tribute was probably something she would have approved of and her family has defended Chappelle's tribute: https://deadline.com/2021/10/dave-chappelle-the-closer-defended-by-sisters-his-trans-friend-daphne-dorman-1234853511/ https://deadline.com/2021/10/dave-chappelle-the-closer-defen... Most of the outrage appears to come from people who haven't actually watched the special and are taking Chappelle's quotes about racism and LGBT issues out of context.

andrew_ 5y ago
> but he did it in an offensive way I find this part of the statement to be a falsehood. He did it in a comedic way, which was part of the point he was trying to make. See: https://nypost.com/2021/10/15/airplane-creator-slams-joy-killing-threat-twitter-9-percent/ https://nypost.com/2021/10/15/airplane-creator-slams-joy-kil...
- whiddershins 5y ago
  For me, calling comedy offensive isn’t even an insult. I am always prepared to be offended by comedy, and if I am, I will keep watching, but only if it is funny enough.
  - smoldesu 5y ago
    My mom used to tell me a story about how she watched Pulp Fiction in theaters when it came out. Some of the scenes were so gross, offensive, horrific and bland that they drove the audience away in waves, until she and her friends were the only ones still there, laughing at how one film could make so many people upset.
- falcolas 5y ago

droopyEyelids 5y ago

Does anyone know what the demands are? Very confusing, it was Chapelle's final special with Netflix, and it has already aired. What would the 1k employees like?

ekianjo 5y ago
> it has already aired. What would the 1k employees like? They want it removed from the platform altogether
doopy1 5y ago
I think they want it to be removed.

andrew_ 5y ago

I'll be watching this with interest, hoping that Netflix leadership follows recent pushback against the woke mob. We can no longer tolerate sanitizing the web of the things a small minority are offended by. This was the message that Chapelle delivered, and this is peak irony.

vlovich123 5y ago

Why does it seem like the controversial statements that are being picked out are what is being fixated on? They seem to intentionally ignore the surrounding context of the message he’s actually trying to convey.

andrew_ 5y ago
Such is the psychology of the outrage machine and the continuously angry and offended operators.
psyc 5y ago
The more they take out of context, the more material they have to call out. It’s not like their follower-allies are going to mind that it was taken out of context.

nimbius 5y ago

Unpopular opinion on hn here but Dave's trans skit hinges on his audience not knowing enough about trans people for him to get away with creative character assassination. He openly condemns their argument against Rowling as goal-posting make believe and in doing so lends his approval to her documented and open transphobia. If anything it should be an indictment of how he treats his audience in 2021. There are plenty of hillarious trans jokes to be made but He needs to do a better job of reading the room. When you punch down in your sets, its bullying not satire.

SuoDuanDao 5y ago
Perhaps JK made some genuinely hurtful comments I'm unaware of, but given the ones that were quoted in a pearl-clutching context I'll believe that iff I see it. There is a school of thought that seeks to treat all trans-gendered or gender dysphoric people as a monolithic group who have only one correct course of action. The irony of that, given what gay-rights activists were working for within living memory, is so sharp as to be painful.
seoulmetro 5y ago
It's okay to be trans-phobic. It's not okay to attack a person because they are trans. Huge differences.

Proven 5y ago

As a paying Netflix customer I kindly request all them be fired ASAP.

vjancik 5y ago

Damn, I need to update my resume quick!

analognoise 5y ago

People are so lamely political these days, it's hard not to see this as slacktivism. I hope the internet virtue signaling echo chamber dies off already, and all these people get fired. Then at least they can see themselves as heroes in their "I'm the main character" stories about how "politically active" they were when they write their books.

lkey 5y ago

The missing context in this article is that two trans employees were suspended for attending a zoom meeting they were linked to by a director. One of those employees had written a twitter thread critical of the special on their personal account. The second thing to note is they fired an organizer of this protest claiming that they leaked how well this special did (broke even basically) just a couple days ago. This is obviously going to have a chilling effect within the company no matter what the intent of the special or the executives was. More broadly, Chappelle seems to have a lot of empathy for his trans friend, but the actual effect seems to have been a fresh supply of TERF ammunition for the next few weeks. The 'discourse' around this is pure poison, and he probably could have predicted this based on how the last special went.

InvertedRhodium 5y ago
> The missing context in this article is that two trans employees were suspended for attending a zoom meeting they were linked to by a director Were they invited to the meeting, or did they just acquire a link? Just because I find your conference call number doesn't give me any inherent right to sit in on it.
- lkey 5y ago
  Can you imagine being suspended for simply entering the wrong call at the meeting's start? I'd be extra-shocked if something like that happened at my workplace, which is similar in size to Netflix. Regardless, since you asked, Netflix backpedalled and reinstated her in writing. https://twitter.com/RainofTerra/status/1448097310026747908 https://twitter.com/RainofTerra/status/1448097310026747908 Speaking for myself, when a director who is also attending a meeting sends me a zoom link, that's an invitation to attend. Edit: More context, it was just a friggin stream: https://twitter.com/RainofTerra/status/1449667391865044994 https://twitter.com/RainofTerra/status/1449667391865044994
  - arthur5005 5y ago
    The person suspended (and then reinstated) intentionally crashed the meeting, and the person let go, leaked the amount paid to David for the special, which is the #1 no no at Netflix, given their business works primarily on information asymmetry. It’s the one thing you definitely shouldn’t do at Netflix, and they knew that.

mandmandam 5y ago

> repeatedly dismisses the concept of a gender identity altogether Er, no he didn't. And the 'Team TERF' thing has at least 7 or 8 minutes of context around it.

deleted 5y ago

[deleted]

TeeMassive 5y ago

Unless it's a substantial number of techies and developers, this will be mostly a moot effort.

anonu 5y ago

Its really tough being a comedian. Generally, in society there are lines drawn over which you must not cross. Comedians typically get to push those boundaries under the guise of comedy or free-thinking or equal-opportunity racism or bigotry. Generally, I am totally supportive of that as it is thought-provoking and conversation inducing. It's better to bring uncomfortable subjects out into the open and make fun of them rather than have them be taboo subjects that should not be discussed. So ultimately, the meta view on all this is, yes, lets have a conversation. Maybe its a heated one, but lets not "cancel" people while were at it. Let the free-markets determine who should be cancelled.

danShumway 5y ago
> Let the free-markets determine who should be cancelled. What would that look like though? I think there's a somewhat valid conversation to be had about cancel culture, but this point comes up over and over, and I'm constantly wondering: if people criticizing speech in public places like Twitter isn't the free market, and Netflix employees collectively advocating that they don't want to host the speech isn't the free market, and if users boycotting or voting with their wallets isn't the free market, and if advertisers pushing for higher standards on the platforms they're advertising on isn't the free market, and if platform-holders and publishers deciding what content they want to promote isn't the free market, then what is the free market? When we talk about cancel culture, a lot of the mechanisms of canceling use free market actions; freedom of association, the right to criticize, the right to filter and to share filters with other people, the right to choose how we spend our money and time. And it's valid to look at the free market of speech and say that sometimes it's overly harsh or that it censors the wrong people or that it can be intolerant, but I don't see how it's possible to simultaneously say that the marketplace of ideas is the correct way to sort out good and bad speech, and also that people being mean on Twitter or calling for boycotts is fundamentally the wrong way to tackle conflict. What do people think the marketplace of ideas is, and how should it act? When the marketplace of ideas deems an idea unpopular or bad, should it still be given equal weight and equal investment and promotion alongside other ideas, even though the marketplace doesn't want it? That's not how the real economic marketplace works; in the economic marketplace if you can't convince people to buy your product, then your company dies and investors stop giving you money and putting you on store shelves. Nobody says that it's a violation of the free market if people badmouth a company online and stores stop carrying their products as a result. Nobody argues that I'm "canceling" Facebook when I tell people to stop using it, or when I argue that Facebook's future VR products are likely to be bad just by virtue of being made by Facebook. What's different about the marketplace of ideas? Is it that Netflix has too much power and it's a pseudo-monopoly over entertainment? I can buy that argument for situations like Facebook or the Apple app store, but I don't really buy it for Netflix.

busymom0 5y ago

The TV Show "Billions" had a line: "What’s the point of having f you money if you never say f you?" That is what I need to see. Does Netflix have a spine to fight back against such nonsense?

deleted 5y ago

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Vaderv 5y ago

What about freedom is speech. This is ridiculous.

malwarebytess 5y ago

The poison is deep. China and Europe are going to eat the USA alive, lol.

xdennis 5y ago
China, maybe. Europe is just delayed America. Whatever happens there gets eventually copied in Europe. Rammstein put it best: "we're all living in Amerika".

rationalfaith 5y ago

LGBT+ is imploding. Obviously they'll always be in the minority. Not to mention their biology is anti whatever they want to be. They'll never taste peace and so are lashing out. This is not good for their cause long term. I don't care what you do in your private life, but you're clearly not okay. Lashing out at other people's views even though don't impact you in any way shape or form. Lashing out would be one thing but trying to cancel their livelihood. With all due respect, FU.

rc2634 5y ago

Corporations will need to start looking at the tweets of applicants to make sure they don’t hire the woke activist types. They are becoming a nuisance in the corporate world.

steve76 5y ago

[dead]

arthur5005 5y ago

So what’s the demand of the walkout? That they cancel the Dave Chapelle special? A black comedian who struggled through accusations being a “mentally ill black crackhead” when he walked away from 50 million dollars? Doesn’t that just prove his point about the double standard and culture of victimhood and success in the trans movement? This all seems to highlight the problem he’s bringing to the forefront.

terminatornet 5y ago

There's a point in the new special where Dave brings up the anti-transgender bathroom bill that was passed and then repealed in North Carolina. When he mentions it, an audience member enthusiastically cheers for it and Dave has to immediately clarify that he's against it. If the points you're trying to make are so unclear that people are enthusiastically cheering for anti-trans laws, you may not be anti-trans, but you're certainly wearing an anti-trans uniform.

xpaqui 5y ago
Yes, we shouldn't allow people to have the wrong opinions. If these people use Dave as the beacon for anti-trans opinions, the person who created a trust fund for the daughter of trans person who killed herself, maybe they aren't that good at anti-trans, just saying.
- terminatornet 5y ago
  That's a good start, hopefully he'll be using some of that $60 million he's made from his netflix specials to support other trans people, not just 1 person he knew
  - xpaqui 5y ago
    He's not helping her family because she was trans, hes helping because they had a human connection. This, this is what I don't agree, the myopic idea where people deserve help or spite depending on some tribal characteristic.

pvm3 5y ago

If anyone else is wondering, the 1k number reported comes from a source[1] not directly linked in this article. [1]: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/digital/netflix-dave-chappelle-walkout-1235031048/ https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/digital/netflix-d... > "At least one thousand Netflix employees are expected to participate in a virtual walkout to protest Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos’ recent comments in support of Dave Chappelle’s latest special, The Closer, according to a current staffer who spoke with The Hollywood Reporter." This should probably be the main article linked in this thread. Anyways according to wikipedia Netflix has just over 12k employees, so 1k+ walkout would be 8%+ walkout which would be pretty significant.

foxes 5y ago

Stop paying attention to Twitter.

StanislavPetrov 5y ago

The sourcing here seems incredibly thin. Who says 1,000 employees are walking out? Variety links to another Variety article as a source for this statement, which in turn links to a Verge article as the source. The Verge article says nothing about 1,000 employees walking out, and contains only a single, anonymous claim that they characterize as,"a leader of the trans ERG in an internal organizing message." It would be interesting to see how many actual Netflix employees are outraged enough by a comedy routine to walk out on their jobs. https://www.theverge.com/2021/10/12/22723592/netflix-trans-employees-walkout-statements-ceo https://www.theverge.com/2021/10/12/22723592/netflix-trans-e...

emerged 5y ago

Excellent opportunity for Netflix to chop some worthless heads without picking up an axe.

emerged 5y ago

Is there any way to financially short sell woke?

rndmind 5y ago

What is this, hackernews... TMZ?!

socrates1998 5y ago

I guarantee that most of these people didn't watch the special. They are just confirming Dave's message. Oh well. Dave will be fine. Netflix will be fine. I wish their was more uproar over other stuff that's on Netflix that is way more offensive, in my opinion.