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http://www.thedailybeast.com/articl...ted-by-feds-in-gender-bias-investigation.html
Hollywood’s perceived gender bias has become a cause célèbre in recent years thanks to Patricia Arquette, Meryl Streep, Jennifer Lawrence, and other powerful women in the industry who have spoken out about the issue.
Now, in a move that brings a new level of seriousness to their cause, the feds are investigating gender discrimination in the industry.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) announced the news on Wednesday, a year after they first urged the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to investigate discrimination against women film and TV directors.
Seven months after the EEOC began interviewing female directors, they’re now conducting the same process with studio executives, showrunners, male directors, agents, and other industry players.
“We are encouraged by the scope of the government’s process and are hopeful that the government will be moving to a more targeted phase,” said Melissa Goodman, director of the LGBT, Gender and Reproductive Justice Project at the ACLU of Southern California, in a statement released Wednesday.
The ACLU’s letter to the government cited a report from the Directors Guild of America that found women represented 14 percent of television directors in 2013 and 2014, as well as a USC study which found only 1.9 percent of directors of the 100 highest-grossing films during those same years were women.
While the EEOC has not confirmed or denied the investigation, since they are required by law to keep such matters confidential, EEOC spokeswoman Justine Lisser wrote in an email to The Daily Beast that they “received the ACLU’s letter containing information documenting the under-representation of women directors” in film and TV, and “had further discussions with the ACLU about their data and conclusions.”
Hollywood’s perceived gender bias has become a cause célèbre in recent years thanks to Patricia Arquette, Meryl Streep, Jennifer Lawrence, and other powerful women in the industry who have spoken out about the issue.
Now, in a move that brings a new level of seriousness to their cause, the feds are investigating gender discrimination in the industry.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) announced the news on Wednesday, a year after they first urged the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to investigate discrimination against women film and TV directors.
Seven months after the EEOC began interviewing female directors, they’re now conducting the same process with studio executives, showrunners, male directors, agents, and other industry players.
“We are encouraged by the scope of the government’s process and are hopeful that the government will be moving to a more targeted phase,” said Melissa Goodman, director of the LGBT, Gender and Reproductive Justice Project at the ACLU of Southern California, in a statement released Wednesday.
The ACLU’s letter to the government cited a report from the Directors Guild of America that found women represented 14 percent of television directors in 2013 and 2014, as well as a USC study which found only 1.9 percent of directors of the 100 highest-grossing films during those same years were women.
While the EEOC has not confirmed or denied the investigation, since they are required by law to keep such matters confidential, EEOC spokeswoman Justine Lisser wrote in an email to The Daily Beast that they “received the ACLU’s letter containing information documenting the under-representation of women directors” in film and TV, and “had further discussions with the ACLU about their data and conclusions.”
