Globo dismisses with caution so as not to lose diversity and avoid being canceled

Sala de TV talked to professionals from Globo’s newsrooms in São Paulo and Rio. The sources said having the perception that the broadcaster’s management spared black professionals from the wave of layoffs.

The presence of blacks and browns (classification used by the IBGE) in the station’s journalism is still disproportionate in relation to the country’s population. Therefore, there would have been a concern not to dismiss presenters, reporters and commentators who represent this racial majority.

In October 2022, Globo created the Diversity board and appointed black executive Samantha Almeida to head the sector. The mission is to expand the presence of black people and produce more stories about Afro-Brazilian history and culture in soap operas, series and other programs.

Department most affected by cuts in recent weeks, journalism tries to apply the same measure of inclusion in its mostly white cast. It became frequent, for example, to see two black presenters on the bench of ‘Jornal Nacional’, as happened on Thursday (6), with Aline Midlej and Marcio Bonfim covering the break for Renata Vasconcellos and William Bonner.

But, in general, the presence of blacks in television news and other journalistic productions on Globo channels remains incomprehensibly small. With more than 20 political and economic commentators, GloboNews, on the air since 1996, has only one black woman, Flavia Oliveira. Inaugurated just 3 years ago, CNN Brasil has much greater representation in front of the cameras.

On Wednesday, in a WhatsApp group of journalists from different vehicles, the rumor circulated that two black journalists from Globo, veterans of coverage of politics in Brasília Heraldo Pereira and Zileide Silva, would be on the list of new layoffs for having high wage.

For now, this has not been confirmed. Eventual dismissals of black icons beloved by viewers will certainly generate criticism and possible cancellation of the station on social networks. On the other hand, safeguarding this profile in the video irritates those who contest the concept of racial equity in the media, claiming that professionals should only be evaluated on talent, never on skin color.