The Hill
Quote:
Slate has suspended Mike Pesca, host of the podcast “The Gist,” after he debated whether non-Black people should be allowed to quote certain racial slurs with colleagues
The New York Times reported that Pesca, who is white, was suspended indefinitely after getting into a debate on Slack regarding Times reporter Donald McNeil, who was recently suspended for repeatedly using a racial slur during a 2019 student trip.
According to the Times, Pesca said he was "heartsick" over hurting his colleagues while adding, “I hate the idea of things that are beyond debate and things that cannot be said.”
Joel Anderson, who hosted a season of Slate's "Slow Burn" podcast and is Black, shot back at insinuations that Pesca's suspension was an overreaction.
The Times notes that Slate introduced a policy in 2019 that required podcast staff to discuss using racist terms before recording podcast episodes.
Pesca reportedly discussed the slur in a 2019 episode about a Black security guard who was fired for using the word. During the recording, he apparently said the slur while quoting the man, though a version in which he did not say it was ultimately used.
Somewhat reminiscent of the James Damore situation at Google a few years back where an employee interpreted the rules literally and did not understand that is not what was actually meant.
Lesson, if you are a literal minded person do not work at a company that brands itself as woke. Yes that is true not just for woke companies but in the presentism woke world doing what was overlooked just a year or two ago may mean you are going to take a financial and reputation hit now.
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Professionally Identified and joined WP August 26, 2013
DSM 5: Autism Spectrum Disorder, DSM IV: Aspergers Moderate Severity
“My autism is not a superpower. It also isn’t some kind of god-forsaken, endless fountain of suffering inflicted on my family. It’s just part of who I am as a person”. - Sara Luterman
24 Feb 2021, 6:52 am
