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Posts tagged as “Shonda Rhimes”

Kerry Washington Accepts Vanguard Award at the #glaadawards (VIDEO)

By goodblacknews on March 22, 2015

Scandal star Kerry Washington accepted the Vanguard Award at Saturday’s 26th Annual GLAAD Media Awards in Los Angeles at the iconic Beverly Hilton. Ellen DeGeneres, who was previously honored with GLAAD’s Stephen F. Kolzak Award, presented the honor. The Vanguard Award is presented to media professionals who have made a significant difference in promoting equality. Previous Vanguard Award honorees include Jennifer Lopez, Kristin Chenoweth, Charlize Theron, Elizabeth Taylor, Antonio Banderas, Drew Barrymore, Janet Jackson, and Sharon Stone.

Check out the video of Washington below:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ruv8As-_CMg&w=560&h=315]

In an acceptance speech that had the audience on their feet, Washington said, “I don’t decide to play the characters I play as a political choice. Yet the characters I play often do become political statements. Because having your story told as a woman, as a person of color, as a lesbian, as a trans person, or as any member of any disenfranchised community, is sadly often still a radical idea. There is so much power in storytelling, and there is enormous power in inclusive storytelling, in inclusive representations. That is why the work of GLAAD is so important. We need more LGBT representation in the media. We need more LGBT characters and more LGBT storytelling. We need more diverse LGBT representation. And by that, I mean lots of different kinds of LGBT people living all different kinds of lives. And this is big—we need more employment of LGBT people in front of and behind the camera.”
Washington continued, “We can’t say that we believe in each other’s fundamental humanity, and then turn a blind eye to the reality of each other’s existence, and the truth of each others’ hearts. We must be allies and we must be allies in this business, because to be represented is to be humanized, and as long as anyone anywhere is being made to feel less human, our very definition of humanity is at stake, and we are all vulnerable. We must see each other, all of us. And we must see ourselves, all of us. And we have to continue to be bold and break new ground until that is just how it is, until we are no longer ‘firsts’ and ‘exceptions’ and ‘rare’ and ‘unique.’ In the real world, being an ‘other’ is the norm. In the real world, the only norm is uniqueness, and our media must reflect that. Thank you GLAAD, for fighting the good fight.”
Washington is best known for her role as Olivia Pope on the LGBT-inclusive hit show Scandal, executive produced by Shonda Rhimes. In addition to the ABC drama, Washington has appeared in other LGBT-inclusive projects like Peeples, She Hate Me, The Dead Girl, and Life Is Hot In Cracktown. The actress is a longtime supporter of equality for LGBT people. She has participated in GLAAD’s annual Spirit Day, a campaign to end anti-LGBT bullying, and has advocated for marriage equality both at-home and abroad.
Ellen DeGeneres presented the Vanguard Award to Kerry Washington. Channing Tatum presented the Stephen F. Kolzak Award to director Roland Emmerich. Comedian Tig Notaro hosted the event. Guests included: Zoe Saldana (Guardians of the Galaxy); Patricia Arquette (CSI: Cyber); TV producer Shonda Rhimes; Viola Davis, Jack Falahee, Matt McGorry, Aja Naomi King, Peter Nowalk (How to Get Away with Murder); Portia de Rossi(Scandal); Graham Moore (The Imitation Game); Pauley Perrette (NCIS); Jill Soloway, Amy Landecker, Jay Duplass, Alexandra Billings, Rhys Ernst, Kiersey Clemons, Michaela Watkins, Alison Sudol, Clementine Creevy, Brett Parasol (Transparent); Michael Harney, Samira Wiley, Nick Sandow, Alysia Reiner (Orange is the New Black); Andrew Rannells(Girls); Murray Bartlett, Daniel Franzese (Looking); Ron Perlman (Stonewall); Jordan Gavaris (Orphan Black); Against Me! lead singer Laura Jane Grace; Michael Mosley, Kevin Daniels, Kevin Bigley (Sirens); Peter Paige, Bradley Bredeweg, Gavin MacIntosh, Hayden Byerly (The Fosters); Yara Martinez (Jane the Virgin); Serayah McNeill (Empire); Alex Newell (Glee); Gregg Sulkin, Rita Volk, Michael J. Willett, Carter Covington (Faking It); Barrett Foa (NCIS: Los Angeles); Jessica St. Clair, Lennon Parham (Playing House); Wilson Cruz (Red Band Society); stylist Brad Goreski; Gary Janetti (Vicious); Guy Wilson, Freddie Smith, Christopher Sean (Days of Our Lives); musician Our Lady J; model Nats Getty; Hannah Hart (My Drunk Kitchen); DJs Sam Sparro, Kim Anh, Derek Monteiro;  GLAAD Board member Meghan McCain; GLAAD National Spokesperson Omar Sharif, Jr. and GLAAD President & CEO Sarah Kate Ellis.
Visit glaad.org/mediaawards/press for a complete list of award recipients announced on Saturday night.
article by Mariah Yamamoto via glaad.org

OPINION: Shonda Rhimes Offers a New Word for "Diversity" — Let's Start Using It

By goodblacknews on March 19, 2015
Shonda Rhimes (Source: Jordan Strauss/AP)

Once a term to describe the laudable aim of ensuring equal representation, “diversity” has devolved into a trite talking point.

It’s an issue that Shonda Rhimes, the mastermind behind television hits such as Scandal, Grey’s Anatomy and How To Get Away With Murder, touched on while accepting an award at the Human Rights Campaign’s gala event in Los Angeles last weekend. In her speech, Rhimes said she’s tired of the way “diversity” is understood by most people.

“I get asked a lot by reporters and tweeters why I am so invested in ‘diversity’ on television,”  Rhimes said, according to Medium‘s text of her speech. “‘Why is it so important to have diversity on TV?’ they say. I really hate the word ‘diversity.’ It suggests something other. … As if there is something unusual about telling stories involving women and people of color and LGBTQ characters on TV.”

Rhimes offered an alternative to the term “diversity,” saying she’d rather describe what she’s doing as “normalizing.”

“I am making TV look like the world looks. Women, people of color, LGBTQ people equal way more than 50% of the population. Which means it ain’t out of the ordinary. I am making the world of television look normal,” she said.

Rhimes makes a great point.

“Diversity” in itself has limits. In the past few decades, the word has become wildly popular, appearing everywhere from corporate websites to college recruitment brochures. In many cases, however, the concept is reduced to simply ensuring that a collection of people who look different from each other occupy the same space. That’s why many diversity fliers for companies and schools paint a picture of wide representation, but the actual demographics of those same institutions remain monochromatic.

Obamas Launch "Let Girls Learn" Education Initiative

By goodblacknews on March 7, 2015

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President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama put their weight behind Let Girls Learn on Tuesday, an initiative to help girls around the world attend secondary school and complete their education.

“Let Girls Learn” began as a United States Agency for International Development effort last summer, and featured a video with celebrities like Alicia Keys and Shonda Rhimes. The goal was “to provide the public with meaningful ways to help all girls to get a quality education,” building on past work on girls’ education and empowerment around the world. Now, the Obama administration will enhance existing programs and expand efforts across the government and through partnerships with the private sector.

“A good education can lift you from the most humble circumstances into a life you never could have imagined,” the first lady said Tuesday when she and the president announced the plan. “I see myself in these girls. I see our daughters in these girls,” she said. “I want to use my time and platform as first lady and beyond to make a real impact.”

According to a FLOTUS tweet, women and girls make up 70 percent of those living in extreme poverty around the world, a fact that education can help change. Approximately 62 million girls around the world are not in school, explains a fact sheet published Tuesday by the White House, with half that number representing adolescent girls.

“These girls have diminished economic opportunities and are more vulnerable to HIV/AIDS, early and forced marriage, and other forms of violence,” the fact sheet says. “Yet when a girl receives a quality education, she is more likely to earn a decent living, raise a healthy, educated family, and improve the quality of life for herself, her family and her community. In addition, girls’ attendance in secondary school is correlated with later marriage, later childbearing, lower maternal and infant mortality rates, lower birth rates, and lower rates of HIV/AIDS.”

imagesThe first lady will work with the Peace Corps to develop community-based solutions and recruit and train volunteers. During the first year of the program, the Peace Corps will implement Let Girls Learn in 11 countries—Albania, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Georgia, Ghana, Moldova, Mongolia, Mozambique, Togo, and Uganda—and will expand to additional countries the following year.

The initiative will include programs focused on education, empowerment and leadership, health and nutrition, preventing gender-based violence, and preventing child, early and forced marriage.

Partnerships with the private sector include commitments from the Center for Universal Education at the Brookings Institution, CARE, Girl Scouts of the U.S.A., PBS Learning Media and the U.N. Foundation’s Girl Up campaign.

To join the efforts please go to letgirlslearn.peacecorps.gov
article by Stav Ziv via newsweek.com

'Selma,' 'Blackish,' Taraji P. Henson Win Big at NAACP Image Awards

By goodblacknews on February 7, 2015
Taraji P. Henson
NAACP Image Awards Winner Taraji P. Henson (PHOTO CREDIT: EARL GIBSON III/WIREIMAGE)

Last night’s NAACP Image Awards was nothing but pure glam. Celebrities slayed on the red carpet while host Anthony Anderson kept the crowd laughing all night. But it was the winners who had us buzzing.

After being snubbed in the Academy Award race, Selma was the clear-cut winner in the film categories, snagging the award for Outstanding Motion Picture, Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture (David Oyelowo), Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture (Common) and Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture (Carmen Ejogo).
“We did this movie because we wanted to tell their story—our story,” said Selma producer Oprah Winfrey in her acceptance speech.
Meanwhile, “Blackish” swept the television categories, taking home all the top honors for comedy series, beating out shows like “Orange is the New Black” and “House of Lies.” The show won Best Comedy Series as well as the awards for Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series (Anthony Anderson), Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series (Tracee Ellis Ross), Oustanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy (Laurence Fishburne) and Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series (Yara Shahidi).
Shonda Rhimes‘ “How to Get Away with Murder” won for Outstanding Drama Series, and its star, Viola Davis, won for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series.
In the music categories, Pharrell Williams won for Outstanding Male Artist while Beyoncé won for Outstanding Female Artist. Taraji P. Henson took home the Image Award for Oustanding Actress in a Motion Picture for her role in No Good Deed, and Belle won for Outstanding Independent Motion Picture.
For a full list, visit www.naacpimageawards.net.
article by Taylor Lewis via essence.com

ABC Orders Crime Thriller Pilot "The Catch" From Shonda Rhimes

By goodblacknews on January 26, 2015
Shonda Rhimes
ABC’s Mega Producer Shonda Rhimes (MICHAEL TRAN/FILMMAGIC)

According to Variety.com, ABC has picked another drama pilot for their 2015-16 season from “TGIT” queen Shonda Rhimes.
“The Catch” from Shondaland’s Rhimes and Betsy Beers follows a female forensic accountant whose career specialty is exposing fraud for a living. Much like the lead ladies of “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Scandal” and “How To Get Away With Murder,” the sure-to-be fierce woman at the forefront of the crime thriller has tumultuous love life with her fiancé, complete with cons and lies.
The pilot will be exec produced by Rhimes, Beers and Julie Anne Robinson, and co-produced by Helen Gregory and Kate Atkinson. Robinson is set to direct and Jennifer Schuur will write the pilot.
article by Lori Lakin Hutcherson (follow @lakinhutcherson)

Shonda Rhimes Calls Out Sony Email Exchange as "Racist" Not "Racially Insensitive"

By goodblacknews on December 14, 2014
Shonda Rhimes
In the latest fallout from the Sony hack, “Scandal” and “Grey’s Anatomy” Creator/Producer Shonda Rhimes has responded bluntly to a leaked email exchange between Sony Pictures Entertainment chief Amy Pascal and producer Scott Rudin.
“Calling Sony comments”racially insensitive remarks” instead of “racist”? U can put a cherry on a pile of sh*t but it don’t make it a sundae,” the Scandal showrunner wrote on her Twitter account on Thursday afternoon.
On Wednesday evening, BuzzFeed posted excerpts of leaked emails between Rudin and Pascal in which they corresponded about a Jeffrey Katzenberg democratic fundraiser and made mention of Kevin Hart, Quentin Tarantino‘s Django Unchained and Steve McQueen‘s 12 Years a Slave.
Read more Chris Rock Pens Blistering Essay on Hollywood’s Race Problem: “It’s a White Industry”
Earlier in the day, Hart responded with a statement of his own, saying that is “able to brush ignorance off of my shoulder and continue to move forward.”
Pascal and Rudin have both issued apologies for the email exchange.
Rhimes, who was honored at The Hollywood Reporter‘s Women in Entertainment event on Wednesday, spoke about race and gender in the industry during the breakfast.
“The view from here  —  way up here where the glass ceiling is broken  —  would be incredible. Right? So how come I don’t remember the moment? When me with my woman-ness and my brown skin went running full speed, gravity be damned, into that thick layer of glass and smashed right through it? How come I don’t remember that happening? Here’s why: It’s 2014,” she stated. Read her entire speech here.
article via hollywoodreporter.com

Shonda Rhimes Receives Sherry Lansing Leadership Award at Hollywood Reporter’s Women in Entertainment Breakfast

By goodblacknews on December 12, 2014

Shonda Rhimes attends The Hollywood Reporter’s 23rd Annual Women In Entertainment Breakfast at Milk Studios on Dec. 10. (Valerie Macon / Getty Images Entertainment)

Shonda Rhimes is a visionary writer and producer whose successful shows — her creations Grey’s Anatomy and Scandal, and How to Get Away With Murder, which Rhimes executive produces — have changed the representation of women, LGBT people, and people of color on television. And on Wednesday, she accepted the Sherry Lansing Leadership Award at the annual Hollywood Reporter’s Women in Entertainment Breakfast.

The event was packed with powerful executives, actors, and previous honorees. Tony Goldwyn, who plays Fitz on Scandal, began Rhimes’ introduction — and gave way to a video message from first lady Michelle Obama, who called Rhimes “a friend.” (She also confessed to being a Scandal addict.)
Rhimes took the podium to a standing ovation and delivered a moving speech in which she paid tribute to the women who went before her and cleared the way for her to create groundbreaking television.
Here is her speech in full:

“When my publicist called to tell me that I was receiving this honor, I screwed up my face and I said, ‘Are you sure? Me?’ And he said, ‘Yes.’ And I said, ‘Why?’ And then I said, ‘No really, WHY?’

And I made him call and ask for some written reason why I was getting this award. Because I really and truly was worried that there might have been some kind of mistake.
I want to pause for a beat here to say that I don’t say these things to be self- deprecating and humble. I am not a self-deprecating, humble person. I think I’m a pretty fantastic badass. But I also think that The Hollywood Reporter Sherry Lansing Award is extraordinary — as is Sherry Lansing herself. So… no, really, WHY?
They sent a written reason why I was getting this award. It said many nice things, but the main thing that it was said was that I was getting the award in recognition of my breaking through the industry’s glass ceiling as a woman and an African-American.
Well. I call my publicist back. Because I just don’t know about this. I mean, I’m concerned now.

ABC Gives Full-Season Orders to ‘Black-ish’ and ‘How to Get Away with Murder’; CBS Renews "Extant"

By goodblacknews on October 9, 2014

Blackish, Murder, Extant
According to Variety.com, television projects featuring African-American leads have fared extremely well this season.  ABC has given full-season orders to the Anthony Anderson/Tracee Ellis Ross comedy “Black-ish” and the Viola Davis vehicle “How to Get Away with Murder,” two of the highest-rated new programs on all broadcast channels.  CBS, in turn, has picked up summer sci-fi drama “Extant” for a second season.  “Extant” stars Halle Berry and is produced by Steven Spielberg.

“Murder” is the fall’s highest-rated new series in adults 18-49, and the premiere also set DVR playback records, gaining about 6 million viewers within the first three days of its airing. It is created and executive produced by Pete Nowalk (“Scandal,” “Grey’s Anatomy”). Shonda Rhimes (“Scandal,” “Grey’s Anatomy”), Betsy Beers (“Scandal,” “Grey’s Anatomy”) and Bill D’Elia (“Grey’s Anatomy,” “The West Wing”) also serve as executive producers.
“Black-ish” has come on strong as the fall’s top new comedy in 18-49 (2.9 rating) and total viewers (9.1 million) in same-day viewing estimates. This week, the show saw a 12% week-to-week increase in adults 18-49, retaining about 80% of its “Modern Family” lead-in. It was created by Kenya Barris and is executive produced by Anderson, Barris, Jonathan Groff, Larry Wilmore, Laurence Fishburne, Helen Sugland and E. Brian Dobbins.
article by Lori Lakin Hutcherson (follow @lakinhutcherson)

Viola Davis Drama "How to Get Away With Murder" Debuts Strongly for ABC

By goodblacknews on September 26, 2014
How to Get Away with Murder

Thursday was a very big night for Shonda Rhimes and ABC, with the latest show executive produced by the “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Scandal” creator — “How to Get Away With Murder” — opening with the largest young-adult audience for any new series this fall.

ABC was strong on two-thirds of Thursday a year ago, but the addition of “Murder” helped cap a lineup — branded by the network as “TGIT” (Thank God It’s Thursday) — that dominated last night among women and will place a strong second overall to CBS/NFL Network’s “Thursday Night Football” in 18-49, 25-54 and total viewers. The Alphabet dramas were the night’s top three entertainment series in the key 18-49 and 25-54 demos as well as total viewers and the net had its best Thursday to open a season in five years.
According to preliminary national estimates from Nielsen, “How to Get Away With Murder” averaged a big 3.8 rating/11 share in adults 18-49 and 14 million viewers overall in the 10 o’clock hour, matching in 18-49 its strong lead-in from “Scandal” (3.8/11 in 18-49, 11.9 million viewers overall), which opened with a series high. Skewing a little older than “Scandal,” “How to Get Away With Murder” built slightly on its lead-in in 25-54 (4.4 vs. 4.3) while adding about 2 million total viewers.
The Viola Davis-fronted “Murder” performed nearly 10% better in 18-49 than last year’s second hour of the “Grey’s Anatomy” season opener, which aired on the Thursday of premiere week, and it also exceeded the “Scandal” season premiere in Week 2 of last season (3.6).
Among all series premieres this fall, “How to Get Away With Murder” ranks best in adults 18-49 — besting the 3.3 for ABC’s “Blackish” on Wednesday and Monday’s dramas premieres of “Scorpion” on CBS and “Gotham” on Fox (both 3.2).  In adults 25-54, “Murder” is neck and neck with “Scorpion” and “Blackish” as fall’s best debut.
“Grey’s Anatomy” opened the night for ABC (3.0/10 in 18-49, 9.8 million viewers overall), shifting to the 8 o’clock hour and placing second to football. Though down in 18-49 as expected from its two-hour, 9-11 p.m. debut of last year (3.4), it outperformed its final 11 episodes from last season while also delivering the show’s largest overall audience in nearly two years (since October 2012).
article by Rick Kissell via variety.com

The New York Times Apologizes to Shonda Rhimes

By goodblacknews on September 24, 2014

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In the words of Omar from The Wire, “you come at the king, you best not miss.” The New York Times came for the queen, that would be the one and only Shonda Rhimes, and they missed royally and now they must pay – which in this day and age means publicly apologize.
Let us recall the chain of events shall we? Alessandra Stanley wrote an article in The New York Times where she called Rhimes an “angry Black woman” in the opening sentence. Rhimes called Stanley out on Twitter, not only for the mislabel, but for also having her facts all the way wrong. Times readers then demanded an apology from the newspaper and called the article racist. So, then came an apology. Only, it took the form of the typical ‘I’m sorry, not sorry’.
The New York Times’ public editor Margaret Sullivan first issued a broad apology and said she would investigate the matter further.
Sullivan then amended the statement and provided information she received about the article from culture editor, Danielle Mattoon.

Early Monday afternoon, I spoke to the culture editor, Danielle Mattoon. She told me that arts and culture editors are well aware of the response to the piece, and she offered words of regret, as well as an explanation and a resolution for the future. “There was never any intent to offend anyone and I deeply regret that it did,” Ms. Mattoon said. “Alessandra used a rhetorical device to begin her essay, and because the piece was so largely positive, we as editors weren’t sensitive enough to the language being used.” Ms. Mattoon called the article “a serious piece of criticism,” adding, “I do think there were interesting and important ideas raised that are being swamped” by the protests. She told me that multiple editors — at least three — read the article in advance but that none of them raised any objections or questioned the elements of the article that have been criticized. “This is a signal to me that we have to constantly remind ourselves as editors of our blind spots, what we don’t know, and of how readers may react.”

So what we have here is Mattoon essentially saying: well we tried and we didn’t know it would get a negative reaction because nobody told us and we clearly don’t have any common sense on race issues and there are no people of color in the newsroom who could have helped us out with this and don’t blame us because there’s still good stuff in the article.
Stanley didn’t do much better with her apology. She wrote:

In the review, I referenced a painful and insidious stereotype solely in order to praise Ms. Rhimes and her shows for traveling so far from it. If making that connection between the two offended people, I feel bad about that. But I think that a full reading allows for a different takeaway than the loudest critics took.

A full reading? Does Stanley think that people only read the first sentence calling Rhimes an “Angry Black Woman,” got so angered they could read no further, but still complained anyway? Yeah, ok. The article was tone-deaf and so is the apology.
At least Sullivan noted:

I still plan to talk to Mr. (Dean) Baquet (executive editor) about the article, its editing, and about diversity in the newsroom, particularly among culture critics. The Times has a number of high-ranked editors and prominent writers who are people of color, but it’s troubling that among 20 critics, not one is black and only one is a person of color.

Well it seems we have gotten to the core of the issue, there aren’t any Black critics who could have checked this whole thing so it wouldn’t have to get this far. But instead, Rhimes and African-American readers and viewers had to take matters into their own hands just to receive a sorry apology. Hopefully, the next step will be to truly diversify the newsroom which will hopefully lead to more content and context within published stories.
article Diana Veiga via clutchmagonline.com