16824: Cyrus Mehri Continues To Campaign For DEI.

 

Fast Company published a perspective from Madison Avenue Project Mastermind Cyrus Mehri, emphasizing why DEIBA+ is important for businesses and democracy.

 

Mehri noted that DEIBA+ progress can be thwarted in closed societies. His experience with Adland’s exclusivity certainly corroborated the perspective.

 

Why DEI is important for both businesses and democracy

 

The architect of the Rooney Rule explains why—and how—leaders must respond to anti-DEI backlash.

 

By Cyrus Mehri

 

Since the Supreme Court overturned affirmative action in 2023, leaders have struggled to respond to the backlash against diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). 

 

As the nation inches closer to election day, there are two sides to the DEI debate: One values democratic ideals of equal opportunity, and the other bestows strong autocratic tendencies while peddling the anti-DEI backlash. In this complex environment, anchoring our work in the vision and values of fairness and open opportunities is the best way to advance DEI and our democracy. And business leaders have an important role to play. 

 

Even though the majority of Americans support DEI and there is significant evidence that DEI efforts advance innovation and business goals, some companies, publicly or privately, are retreating from their pledges to advance workplace inclusion. Many of these unwarranted retreats overlook that employment laws on the book remain strong notwithstanding the Supreme Court’s landmark decision on college admissions last year. 

 

Still, many leaders have caved to the anti-DEI movement. Rather than operating out of blind fear, leaders can look to our democratic values to keep their commitment on track in the face of the anti-DEI backlash. And there are concrete steps leaders can take to improve their workplaces to make their organizations more diverse, equitable, and inclusive. 

 

Why DEI is an important part of Democracy 

 

Fortunately, there are steps we can all take to promote DEI, advance equal opportunities, and strengthen our democracy. In Fareed Zakaria’s recent book, Age of Revolutions: Progress and Backlash from 1600 to the Present, Zakaria posits that the struggle of our time is less about contrasting visions of democracy versus autocracy but instead of contrasting visions of open versus closed societies.

 

Closed societies are xenophobic, close borders, restrict commerce, fear progress, and resist innovation. Open societies cherish pluralism and religious tolerance, and embrace immigrants, new ideas, and both republican and liberal democratic values. 

 

Today’s DEI backlash follows a tumultuous recent history. Conservative-led book bannings have become rampant. And xenophobia has manifested in many ways including the vilifying of legal immigrants. Former President Donald Trump has even threatened to enact mass deportations if he is elected president. Trump and his allies have also supported efforts to ban DEI at state universities, and the shutting down of modest efforts to open doors to those excluded from capital. This is the playbook of closed societies. If we allow these exclusionary practices to endure, it will diminish the promise of equal opportunity and progress toward a strong and inclusive economy. 

 

DEI advocates can and should champion DEI because they are ultimately derived from principles of an open society, because they are crucial to a democracy, and because they are good business. I’ve seen many of these policies in theory and practice throughout my career. 

 

I’ve represented employees, women and people of color, at companies such as Texaco, Coca-Cola, Morgan Stanley, Ford Motor Company and many other organizations who were completely boxed out of the upper-level management positions, which came with higher salaries, access to stock options, and decision-making power. We championed “open society” reforms. These changes made decisions fairer and more transparent, opening doors of opportunity to our clients. These changes also improved opportunities for white and male employees who didn’t have the connections to succeed under a regime of favoritism and subjectivity. 

 

How to achieve fair competition for opportunities 

 

A few key reforms can break down barriers which keep many employees from competing fairly for promotions—and keep future top talent undiscovered. The first is to open up promotions to fair competition and more transparency. We need to replace “tap on the shoulder” promotions with job posting systems that allow employees to learn about and compete for positions. Job selection criteria can be too narrow, exclusionary and off target, so teams should expand job selection criteria to ensure that they are attracting a wide range of applicants.

 

The second major strategy that can promote fair competition is the use of diverse interview slates. This reform ensures women, people of color, and other overlooked or underutilized candidates can compete for top jobs. 

 

This is a policy my colleagues and I helped enact at the National Football League when we created the Rooney Rule, a diverse slate requirement built on these early initiatives to transform the NFL. It led to record numbers of minority head coaches, general managers, and, more recently, club presidents. In the wake of the Rooney Rule, a head coach or general manager of color led their team to the Super Bowl 10 times. Last year, all of the NFL teams with African American head coaches advanced to the playoffs.

 

The third open society reform leaders should consider is to make DEI data and progress more transparent—such as the use of a “racial equity assessment” like the one my colleagues at Working IDEAL co-created. Every major company should use independent equal opportunity assessments to identify new ideas, innovations, and strategies. 

 

Above all, DEI advocates need to hold their heads high during our tumultuous times. Most Americans want to see fair processes and fair competition for advancement without artificial barriers and preconceived notions of bias. Workplaces can come together on values of fair competition through an open society mindset that brings credibility to inclusive practices—and ultimately innovation, more productivity, and new ideas.

16823: Publicis Groupe Is On Fire—And On Firing Spree.

 

MediaPost reported Publicis Media axed over 100 US employees for failing to comply with RTO policies. Advertising Age reported up to 200 employees will also get cut from Publicis Groupe digital agencies, including Razorfish and Digitas—although it’s not clear if the digital dismissals are tied to RTO compliance.

 

Meanwhile, Publicis Groupe CEO Arthur Sadoun gushed over Q3 results and declared “we should outperform the industry by 400 basis points on average in 2024.”

 

In short, Publicis Groupe terminates employees whether they come into the office or not—and while the White holding company is boasting strong performance.

 

The corporate motto “Viva La Difference” should be revised to “Viva La Indifference”.

 

Publicis Media Lets Go Of 100+ U.S. Staff Over RTO Compliance

 

By Steve McClellan

 

Publicis Media has parted ways with over 100 staffers in the U.S. because they did not comply with the agency group’s return-to-office policy.  

 

It wasn’t immediately clear which offices around the country the departures occurred. Publicis Media oversees agencies including Spark Foundry, Zenith and Publicis Health Media.

 

Last October Publicis Groupe announced that it would implement new companywide work-from-home policy—effective January 1 of this year—requiring employees to be in the office three days a week with Mondays a must for one of those days. Also consecutive work-from-home days are no longer allowed.  

 

While the new policy was rolled out globally at the start of this year, it was put into effect in the U.S. in the spring of 2023.  

 

In a video message to employees last fall, CEO Arthur Sadoun said work-from-home was a viable option during the COVID-19 pandemic. But he indicated that people are at their best workwise when they are interacting face-to-face in an office environment working together. Hence the post-COVID policy change. 

 

In regard to the recent U.S. departures Publicis Media issued a statement:

 

“We have been clear and consistent about our policy that employees work from the office at least three days a week—an expectation that is being met and exceeded by the majority of our talent. We do not comment on individual employment changes.”

16822: Chatting About Bias In AI.

 

Adweek published a perspective on addressing bias in AI. Written by an experiential creative and copywriter at Monk, the exposition presented challenges that emerged during the invention of AI-powered robot Sir Martian, named after Sir Martin Sorrell. Um, it sounds like AI bias inspired by a biased A-hole.

 

 

4 Ways to Mitigate Bias in AI and Close the Diversity Deficit

 

Key lessons from a 2024 Cannes activation

 

By Larissa Pontez

 

Feed a prompt to an AI image generator and you’re bound to encounter an insidious pattern: Do the people look … too stunning? Perhaps even wanton? 

 

Gender, race, body type, nationality, religion—you’re almost guaranteed to get prejudiced and outdated stereotypes when using these descriptors in prompts. And “wanton” is a deliberate adjective; it’s mostly used pejoratively toward women, and AI tends to oversexualize female images. These glaring imbalances showcase a recurring problem with AI outputs: the replication of societal biases, which can be harmful to actual people and communities. 

 

I wrestled with this firsthand while helping develop Sir Martian, one of our key AI demos featured at Cannes earlier this year. Sir Martian, playfully named after Sir Martin Sorrell, is an AI-powered robot in the form of an alien caricaturist. Throughout the festival, he invited attendees to sit down for a quick chat and a sketched portrait, based on their appearance and tastes. 

 

I’m proud that the demo was a success, because as you can imagine, this interaction was more than a simple conversation. And it taught me a lot about the privileges and responsibilities of shaping a new technology. Here’s what I learned. 

 

Words matter—your data sets the tone 

 

Most AI tools available for the general public are trained on datasets that aren’t accessible or visible to users, so I feel particularly fortunate to work at a company that creates and trains its own models. It really is a “great power, great responsibility” scenario. 

 

The foundation of any generative AI model should be diverse and comprehensive. By expanding the range of base images and training materials, developers can create AI systems that represent a broader spectrum of human experiences. This enriches outputs and helps combat entrenched biases. 

 

With Sir Martian, specificity was essential for aligning user inputs with desired outputs. After some trial and error, we found that we had to train the model combining visual input with very precise text prompts in order to get it to represent people accurately. 

When given a picture of a Black woman and the prompt “woman with braids,” the AI model automatically defaulted to a woman with German-style braids. We had to train and fine-tune it using specific terms like “cornrows” and “box braids” to get it to create accurate drawings. Giving the system a wider variety of terms to connect to visual references was crucial to getting more diverse depictions. 

 

This step was humbling because I encountered my own limitations in the process. For example, we don’t have a large Muslim population where I’m based in Brazil, yet a global audience traveling to Cannes would likely include women in hijabs or chadors. This prompted me to research the nuances between different articles of dress that, to an untrained eye, may have been seen as interchangeable. The experience highlighted the importance of stepping outside of our bubbles to recognize what we don’t know, in order to learn and incorporate diverse cultural elements that better serve global users. 

 

Diversity is (and isn’t) everyone’s responsibility 

 

As the only woman on the team building Sir Martian, the problematic depiction of women raised alarm bells for me early on but didn’t faze my male colleagues until I brought it to their attention. We need more diverse teams who can authentically lead AI in the right direction. But at the same time, the onus shouldn’t be on minorities alone to fix biases that have affected them for generations. 

 

Overcoming these biases demands collective effort. After I discovered flaws in Sir Martian’s AI model, I partnered closely with a developer on the project who was dedicated to addressing these issues. I reached out to a Black co-worker and Muslim women in our global community for their feedback on whether Sir Martian’s drawings were respectfully reflecting their identities. These are just some examples of the cross-disciplinary collaboration that needs to happen in order to make a change; once you flip the switch and understand what needs to be done, the rate of progress is astounding. 

 

The industry has a ways to go, but we’re seeing positive change. Since Sir Martian launched, we’ve instated a global AI policy to help staff become more conscious of common biases that occur in AI systems, such as data bias, algorithmic bias, and confirmation bias. Perhaps more importantly, fostering an inclusive environment encourages a shared responsibility in creating AI systems that accurately and fairly reflect diverse experiences, ultimately benefiting everyone. 

 

Know where to draw the line, and back up your decisions 

 

Our industry celebrates how AI will unlock personalization for everyone, but there are limits. The unfortunate reality is that, when it comes to accurately depicting everyone, we can’t perfectly address every difference on every project. But we can try to be as thorough as possible given the limits of technology, time, and budgets. 

 

When it comes to being more diverse and inclusive, for example, people naturally focus on accounting for a variety of skin tones. That’s great, but it’s often as far as we go. What about different body types and sizes? How might a generated portrait differ when someone is sitting in a wheelchair instead of standing up?

 

We should not only address these questions, but also begin asking them at a project’s inception. Those of us developing consumer-facing generative AI activations must be conscious of where our parameters fall, as well as able to justify the decisions we make. 

 

When working on Sir Martian for the demo in Cannes, we decided to leave children out of the training data, knowing that they were not our target audience. This was a conscious decision rather than a blind spot in our process, as representation and inclusion so often are in AI projects.

 

It’s time to do better 

 

We all know that AI is an amazing tool that has progressed by leaps and bounds over the last few years, but one thing it can’t do is correct our own blind spots. That’s on us to identify and address. 

 

AI serves as a mirror to our society, reflecting both its progress and its persistent challenges. If left unchecked, biases can become even more ingrained through AI. Tackling this issue isn’t a task for minorities alone—it’s something we all need to work on together. This shared commitment can help genuinely turn AI into a force for positive change. 

16821: Just Another Mad Men Monday 6.

 

16820: Goodnight Monsoon…?

Goodnites nighttime underwear holds 3 bottles of water. Amazing that no one has created a cross-promotion with Perrier. Then again, disposable diapers and water bottles are notorious sources of environmental pollution.

16819: Systemic Racism Playing At Iconic Game Shows?

 

USA TODAY reported on charges of racial discrimination targeting executives at “Jeopardy!” and “Wheel of Fortune” game shows. Expect a “Black Jeopardy!” skit on SNL soon.

 

‘Jeopardy’, ‘Wheel of Fortune’ under fire: Game shows hit with race discrimination claims

 

Two former employees recount a toxic work environment that included racially insensitive jokes, unequal pay and more.

 

Jessica Guynn, Felecia Wellington Radel | USA TODAY

 

Executives at “Jeopardy!” and “Wheel of Fortune” discriminated against people of color then fired them for raising concerns about a toxic work environment where staffers made disparaging remarks about Black contestants, two former employees allege in civil rights complaints obtained by USA TODAY. 

 

The two former Sony Pictures Entertainment workers said they were consistently given fewer opportunities than their white colleagues and were routinely subjected to racially insensitive behavior, including crew members mocking a Black contestant’s natural hairstyle.

 

Shelley Ballance Ellis, 60, said she was the highest-ranking Black production executive on the popular game shows. During her 26-year tenure, she said she was loaded down with extra responsibilities but passed over for promotions. 

 

Monique Diaz, 48, who is Latina and worked on the shows for 23 years, said she was paid substantially less than a newly hired white colleague. 

 

In April, Ballance Ellis and Diaz were laid off in what the company said was a corporate reorganization. 

 

“The truth is that I and others were targeted by Sony because we opposed discrimination,” Ballance Ellis alleged in her complaint.

 

Sony has not responded to multiple requests for comment from USA TODAY.

 

‘Take an open, honest look’

 

Attorneys Peter Romer-Friedman and Hillary Benham-Baker, who represent Ballance Ellis and Diaz, said Sony violated California civil rights laws. 

 

Complaints filed with the California Civil Rights Department are investigated by the agency, which can sue the company, dismiss the charges or grant workers the right to pursue their own lawsuit.

 

“What happened to Shelley and her colleagues behind the closed doors of production should not happen and it was unlawful under our civil rights laws,” Benham-Baker told USA TODAY. 

 

The allegations against “Jeopardy” and “Wheel of Fortune” come amid rising tensions over persistent opportunity gaps for talent from diverse backgrounds in the entertainment industry.

 

When George Floyd was murdered by a white police officer in May 2020, major studios and networks joined in calls for equality, pledging solidarity and millions of dollars. But those commitments have since faded.

 

In an exclusive interview with USA TODAY, Ballance Ellis said marginalized people are often overlooked and undervalued in mainstream Hollywood, where mostly white power brokers decide who gets the job or promotion or what stories are told on screen.

 

Ballance Ellis’ family has deep roots in the entertainment business – her grandfather was an actor and her father a studio executive and her grandparents owned the historic Ebony Showcase Theater in Los Angeles – so she said she felt a responsibility to “use her voice for good” in an industry where few people of color without connections dare speak out.

 

“I hope that this will be an opportunity for any entertainment executive to look at themselves and really, take an open, honest look,” she told USA TODAY.

 

Complaint alleges racially insensitive jokes, halted career ambitions

 

“Jeopardy” and “Wheel of Fortune” are mainstays of American television and major financial contributors to the Sony entertainment ecosystem. 

 

Ballance Ellis led the clearance and licensing department, which obtains legal rights to video clips, artwork, music and other intellectual property featured on the shows, where she said she had a “front-row seat” to racial bias and insensitivity.

 

In her complaint, Ballance Ellis says the company tolerated racially insensitive jokes about Black contestants. 

 

During a “Wheel of Fortune” production meeting in 2020, a Black employee said he overheard colleagues saying a Black woman’s locs hairstyle reminded them of the movie “The Elephant Man,” about a man grotesquely disfigured by a congenital disorder who makes his living as a sideshow attraction in Victorian England.

 

When the show’s director responded that he and the crew members were just joking, Ballance Ellis said in her complaint that she commented: “Which part is funny?” 

 

Ballance Ellis said she also raised concerns about biased “Jeopardy!” clues and advocated for “more inclusive, nuanced clues about people from diverse backgrounds.”

 

For example, in 1999 in the "Black History" category, the clue was: "The black population of these U.S. areas, the destination of ‘white flight,’ doubled in the ‘70s and ‘80s.” The answer was “the suburbs.”

 

“I mean to think that people are moving out of a neighborhood because Black people move in. That is not Black history of anything,” she said. “After that happened, people I knew were offended and in my opinion, rightfully so. I was embarrassed to work somewhere where that happened.”

 

Other actions had a traumatic effect on employees, according to Ballance Ellis. 

In 2017, “Wheel of Fortune” issued an apology after an episode for the show’s “Southern Charm Week” showed hosts Pat Sajak and Vanna White in front of a plantation and two slave reenactors in antebellum dress. 

 

But last year, a Black employee was told to create a shot list – a document detailing each shot in a particular scene – of plantation footage the producers were considering for Sajak’s retirement sendoff, according to Ballance Ellis. Objections from staff members were ignored, she said.

 

Ballance Ellis said her own experiences with discrimination at “Jeopardy” and “Wheel of Fortune” were painful episodes in a job she otherwise loved. 

 

Even when she was assigned additional responsibilities when three producers left the company, she said she was not considered for promotions.

 

In 2021, after a lengthy search, executive producer Mike Richards was named permanent host, replacing Alex Trebek who died in 2020. But Richards was forced to step down over offensive remarks he made on an earlier podcast and his involvement in past employment discrimination lawsuits while executive producing “The Price Is Right.” 

 

Amid the public uproar, Ballance Ellis said Sony’s senior leadership mandated diversity and inclusion training. 

 

During a gender-based training session in 2023, Ballance Ellis spoke up about her stunted career ambitions.

 

“I explained that I believe I had faced a glass ceiling at Sony as a Black woman, pushing back on my colleagues’ claim that having white women in leadership meant there was no glass ceiling for people of color or Black women like me,” she said in her complaint.

 

Ballance Ellis said a supervising producer responded: “Shelley thinks she faced a glass ceiling, but that isn’t accurate. The reason that we didn’t promote Shelley is that Shelley is incredibly valuable in the position that she is in.”

 

Earlier this year, Ballance Ellis said she was forced out of the company and her duties were handed to a younger white woman. 

 

“Sony simultaneously ‘reorganized’ the positions from my team of diverse employees (who are over 40 years old) and replaced them with mostly younger white employees,” she said in her complaint.

 

That included Diaz, who joined the clearance and licensing department in 2011. 

 

Diaz told USA TODAY she enjoyed working with her supervisor, Ballance Ellis, and her team, but she grew increasingly troubled by how nonwhite contestants were treated versus white contestants, and how employees’ concerns about racial bias were disregarded. 

 

In 2020, Diaz said she attended a meeting where a production supervisor mocked Black comedian Leslie Jones' request to bring her own hairstylist for her appearance as a celebrity contestant on “Wheel of Fortune.” For years, Black actors have complained they have to either do their own hair or sit through a stylist who does not know how to. 

 

“The bad part is I learned early on that there were different roles for different people and it was disheartening,” Diaz said. 

 

Another employee approached Diaz in 2023 to share that a supervising producer made about Black people’s skin “not aging as rapidly as white people’s skin.”

 

“I felt the environment was very discriminatory,” she said. 

 

Diaz said she learned that firsthand when she found out that she was earning about $50,000 a year less than a new white colleague doing the same work. She said she filed a complaint with human resources but got no response.

 

When Ballance Ellis advocated for an equity pay adjustment, Ballance Ellis said she was asked: “Does she know” she is being paid less? Ballance Ellis said she responded: “We know.” 

 

The supervising producer refused to take action, so Ballance Ellis said she turned to Sony’s chief diversity officer. 

 

Diaz said she got a pay bump but still earned $15,000 less per year than her colleague.

 

“We’re talking about iconic American shows that are supposed to be inclusive and reflect the best of America,” Romer-Friedman said. “Until people like Shelley and Monique can remain and thrive at ‘Jeopardy’ and ‘Wheel of Fortune,’ those shows aren’t going to represent the best of America.”

16818: TGIFried Hair Day.

 

Clickbait from ambulance chasers positioning themselves as defenders of justice—ready to take legal action against hair relaxer manufacturers?! Straight up.

16817: Programming Chief Marketing Officers…?

 

Here are additional thoughts about the previously spotlighted Kellogg Executive Education | Chief Marketing Officer Program:

 

Does the program cover CMO consideration for diverse vendors—as well as scrutinizing the diversity of White advertising agencies chosen as partners? Historically, CMOs seemingly prefer to underutilize, underfund, and undermine non-White enterprises—and appear overjoyed to conspire with White ad agencies.

 

Why is the program an invitation-only affair? The Northwestern Kellogg website states, “The CMO program is invitation-only to ensure a strong peer group.” Um, that sounds like perpetuating Whites Only exclusivity.

16816: Overreaction Of The Week.

The Associated Press reported on a deadly E. coli outbreak linked to Mickey D’s Quarter Pounders—marking the second sickening event at the Golden Arches this week.

16815: Does CMO Program Cover Conscience Coursework?

 

Does the Kellogg Executive Education | Chief Marketing Officer Program include coursework on considering how self-absorbed decisions adversely impact the livelihoods of workers at White advertising agencies? Probably not.