The hits just keep coming for CNN. According to reports from The root.com, the news network is “facing a growing racial discrimination lawsuit” that is expected to grow exponentially in the coming weeks and months.
The hits just keep coming for CNN. According to reports from The root.com, the news network is “facing a growing racial discrimination lawsuit” that is expected to grow exponentially in the coming weeks and months. The lawsuit itself stems from a proposed class action in Georgia federal court where “plaintiffs claim that at CNN and other Time Warner units, African Americans receive lower performance ratings in evaluations, that there are huge discrepancies in pay between employees doing similar jobs but who are of different races, and that promotion for black employees is blocked by a “glass ceiling.”
Many are aware that other news outlets, like Fox News, are also experiencing discrimination lawsuits of their own, so how do CNN’s legal troubles differ? For starters, according to a recent report by Eriq Gardner, the lawsuit against “CNN and sister companies is much broader.” According to the lawsuit, in addition to African-American employees feeling blocked by a glass ceiling and experiencing discrepancies in pay, many claim they “have endured slurs from superiors, including “It’s hard to manage black people” and “Who would be worth more: black slaves from times past, or new slaves?”
However, these allegations aren’t new. In fact, this lawsuit has been brewing for awhile now. For example, earlier this year, another former employee stepped forward, accusing the major news network of “racial and religious discrimination.” The former employee was Omar Butcher, and he filed a lawsuit against CNN in the United States District Court Northern District of Georgia. Butcher’s lawsuit was the third filed against the network “over discrimination over the past year.”
In addition to Butcher’s lawsuit and the more recent ones being filed against the network, the National Association of Black Journalists released a “press release expressing concern about the atmosphere at CNN for African Americans” back in 2014.
But if you thought this myriad of lawsuits against CNN would coerce a response from the network, think again. Oftentimes when asked to comment on the lawsuits, network spokespeople have said that “CNN does not comment on pending litigation.”
One may find it ironic that allegations like these have been filed against a “network claiming to stand for journalistic integrity and for a brand opposed to racism.” Perhaps instead of busying itself with Reddit or criticizing private citizens online, the staff at CNN and its journalists should put a bit more effort in addressing the racial discrimination claims against them.
Sources:
CNN Faces A Class Action Racial Discrimination Suit That Is Growing ‘Exponentially’
CNN Faces Growing Racial Discrimination Lawsuit
Former CNN employee Omar Butcher sues, claiming race discrimination
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