Paramount TV boss fired for alleged racial remarks

The firing of Paramount’s TV chief for inappropriate, “racial” remarks is the latest in a series of such sackings in the US.

The remarks were made during discussion about a TV reboot of the 1996 movie “The First Wives Club".

The president of Viacom’s Paramount Television unit has been fired for inappropriate remarks.

Amy Powell, who ran the unit for five years, was let go because of comments “inconsistent with our company’s values,” said Paramount Pictures chairman and chief executive Jim Gianopulos in a memo to the studio.

The firing came after an investigation by Paramount’s human resources and legal team this week after complaints were made about Ms Powell’s conduct, according to the memo. “It is imperative that we uphold our values and ensure that all employees feel safe and included in the workplace,” Mr Gianopulos said.

While the memo doesn’t disclose what Ms Powell said, a person familiar with the matter said the remarks in question were “racial in nature.” Specifically she made remarks on a conference call about black women being angry and about black children being raised by a single parent.

A person on the call reported the incident to human resources and it was confirmed by others on the call, but Ms Powell denied it occurred, the person familiar with the matter said.

The call was in relation to a TV reboot of the movie The First Wives Club that Paramount Television is making for its sister cable channel, Paramount Network.

Ms Powell said she couldn’t comment and hung up when reached by The Wall Street Journal.

The high-profile firing of Ms Powell is the latest over inappropriate remarks in American corporations. Last week Papa John’s International Inc. Chairman John Schnatter resigned after using a racial slur, and last month Netflix fired its head of communications, Jonathan Friedland, for the same offence.

Paramount’s TV division is seen as a crucial engine for reviving the studio, which has struggled in recent years. Once one of the top studios, Paramount had all but abandoned the television business when its parent, Viacom, spun off CBS Corp more than a decade ago. In 2013, Paramount re-entered the TV business with Ms Powell at the helm.

While still a relatively small player compared with AT & T’s Warner Bros., Walt Disney and 21st Century Fox, Paramount Television has had some recent producing successes, including the Netflix teen drama 13 Reasons Why and The Alienist on TNT.

News of Ms Powell’s firing was first reported by The Hollywood Reporter.

In his memo, Mr. Gianopulos said the studio will immediately look for Ms Powell’s successor.

Dow Jones Newswires