Monday, May 21, 2007

The squeamishness at CNN

Perhaps this explains a lot. AfterElton.com has posted Part II of its thorough and illuminating story on open gays in the TV newsroom. Writer James Hillis asked each of the networks if it would stand by an on-camera anchor who decided to be open about his or her sexual orientation. While most -- including Fox -- offered varying degrees of support, CNN's response (or lack of one) was the most interesting, and not very encouraging:

CNN did not respond to this request. And while CNN was given weeks of extra time to work out an executive interview – they did not come through with one until after press time. They did offer a statement early in the process from Jim Walton, president of CNN Worldwide which supported both the value of a “diverse workforce” and CNN journalists “ in whatever decisions they make about sharing aspects of their personal lives.”