April 14, 2021 Dear WGBH Executives, Pam Johnston, General Manager John Abbott, President and CEO Sean Corcoran, Senior Managing Editor Azita Ghahramani, Co-Executive Producer Courtney Kennedy, Co-Executive Producer Yemisi Oloruntola-Coates, Chief Inclusion and Equity Officer Aaron Schachter, Exec Producer We are a group of non-fiction filmmakers and members of the Documentary Producers Alliance-Northeast (DPA-Northeast), representing filmmakers in New England and upstate New York. We are writing alongside other New England film professionals to register our complaint against Emily Rooney for her demeaning and racist commentary on Beat the Press, April 2nd, linked here. Many of us have produced for GBH, which is known for its fact-based reporting and integrity. Rooney is a longtime presence there, touted in her bio as someone with “deep knowledge of media, politics and culture.” The program we reference was about access to airtime and funding from PBS – which concerns all of us. Instead of showcasing her understanding of the subject, Rooney relied on derision, racist tropes and more ignorance than fact. The discussion that day was about a letter sent to PBS on March 29 from Beyond Inclusion, signed by almost 600 media professionals including, as Callie Crossley pointed out, top award-winning filmmakers who count Oscars, Emmys, International Emmys, Peabodys, among their many major awards in the documentary field. The letter criticized the lack of diverse voices represented both behind the camera and in management at PBS. It questioned the exclusive PBS relationship with Ken Burns and it described how this relationship reveals the PBS system’s priorities in allocating resources (funding and air time). Finally, the signers asked for data on how much air time and funding BIPOC makers receive, versus white makers. Rather than facilitating a fact-based discussion about the request from these filmmakers, Rooney began the program by attacking them: “They didn’t say which films, which filmmakers didn’t have a voice because Ken had so much.” Of course no one knows whose projects would have been funded, because you can’t predict a past that never happened. She noted that Ken Burns “had 200 hours, but that averages out to five hours a year, over 40 years.” Anyone with any knowledge of independent film knows that 5 hours a year is a monopoly. How much airtime goes to other filmmakers who are regularly commissioned by PBS? As Rooney continued, her comments became more and more problematic. She admitted that she had not seen the series Asian Americans, but nevertheless suggested that perhaps “it wasn’t as good as Ken Burns’ work,” accounting for why his “Hemingway” series got six hours of PBS primetime to cover one man’s life, to their five hours – to cover 150 years of Asian American history. These remarks were demeaning and disrespectful. She cast doubts on the work of filmmakers of color without having even seen their films herself, displaying both ignorance and bias. Panelist Callie Crossley tried to clarify the issue that drove the growing list of Beyond Inclusion signers, to sign the letter. “They know how much absorption Ken Burns is taking up from all the other brilliant people. I’m talking Oscar-nominated, Emmy-nominated… it’s stunning the kind of talent they have.” Rooney responded with conjecture, not facts, repeating her suggestion that perhaps the work of “those filmmakers” is not worthy of PBS. The implication here is deeply disturbing, especially coming from such a longtime and prominent GBH host. Not only did she perpetuate age-old racial stereotypes, she completely failed to address the important issues raised in the letter. It has long been true that structural barriers give continued access to certain privileged groups and individuals, while hundreds of highly qualified, accomplished non-fiction filmmakers struggle to sustain their careers. If PBS’s stated mission is to “serve the American public with programming and services of the highest quality, using media to educate, inspire, entertain and express a diversity of perspectives," then our taxpayer dollars and those few precious programming hours should support a diversity of talented voices behind the lens. We stand with Beyond Inclusion in their critique of public media and are writing to bring this accountability home to the place where we live and make films. We ask for Emily Rooney to issue a public apology for her racist statements. Her comments are particularly egregious in this moment, as Asian Americans across the country are experiencing a dramatic increase in hate crimes and violence. 2. We recommend that GBH devote an episode of Beat the Press to address the issues raised in Beyond Inclusion's open letter and the problems with Ms. Rooney's handling of the prior broadcast and that that program include guest filmmakers of color, with Callie Crossley hosting. As filmmakers committed to growth and change in the public media system about which we care deeply, we invite your further suggestions. We urge you to attend to this matter swiftly. Respectfully, Sara Archambault, Producer, Providence, RI Sabrina Avilés, Producer/Director & Director, Boston Latino International Film Festival Susan Chinsen, Director, Boston Asian American Film Festival Kathryn Dietz, Director/Producer, Needham, MA Sian Evans, Director/Producer, Veazie, ME Linda Garmon, Director/Producer, Cambridge MA Amy Geller, Director/Producer, Cambridge MA Alexandra de Gonzalez, Director/Producer/Editor, Watertown, MA Margo Guernsey, Director/Producer, Watertown, MA Christie Herring, Director/Producer, New Haven, CT Jessica Estelle Huggins, Creative Producer & Impact Strategist, Boston, MA Adam Mazo, Director/Producer, Upstander Project, Boston, MA Jackie Mow, Director/Producer/DP, Cambridge,MA Ben Pender-Cudlip, Director/Cinematographer, Medford, MA Kavita Pillay, Director/Producer, Cambridge MA Manette Pottle, Producer, Rockland, ME Rebecca Richman Cohen, director/producer, Cambridge MA Louise Rosen, Producer/Distributor, Brunswick, ME Lisa Simmons, Director, Roxbury International Film Festival Tracy Heather Strain, Director/Producer, Middletown, CT Heather Cassano, Director/Producer, Mendon, MA -------- RESPONSE FROM PAM (sent April 15): Dear Ms. Archambault and local filmmakers, Thank you for your very thoughtful letter, and for your many contributions to the content and vitality of public media. We acknowledge and share the concerns you have raised about the April 2 edition of Beat the Press, which did not meet GBH’s standards for opinion journalism, or our commitment to being an organization that respects all people. We have taken steps with Emily Rooney, and she has recorded an apology, which will be broadcast at the beginning of the next edition of Beat the Press, on Friday, April 16. Like you, we are committed to growth and change within the public media system. This episode is an unfortunate reminder of the continuing work GBH must do, and is doing, to meet our commitment to advancing understanding, tolerance and justice. Thank you for taking the time to write, and for your care and support of public media. Sincerely, -Pam Johnston