Diversity
Penguin Random House published their 2020 Social Impact Report, evaluating their “social impact commitment areas” of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion; Environment & Sustainability; and Free Expression & Joy of Reading. CEO Markus Dohle acknowledges in the introduction, “In some areas, we have a long way to go. Change is overdue when it comes to building a publishing industry that’s truly diverse and equitable—from the authors we publish to the employees we hire. We cannot erase the past, but we can—and will—do everything within our power to help build a more equitable and just world through the power of books and reading, and our own internal practices.”
Among efforts for 2021 are “finalizing and sharing our author audit, which was conducted to establish
a baseline for our mandate to publish more books by creators of color, and establishing an
action plan anchored by concrete, data-informed goals to diversify our content moving forward.”
Claim-Counterclaim
In the latest Foundry filings, Yfat Reiss Gendell responded to Peter McGuigan’s effort to dismiss her counterclaims for defamation, tortious interference and more with a more concise statement of her allegations. In answer to McGuigan’s challenge, Gendell cites — with accompanying documents — at least eight alleged “false assertions,” further asserting that McGuigan made the statements “with actual malice, with ill will and spite, and without good faith.”
Controversies
Elin Hilderbrand‘s new novel Golden Girls, published on Tuesday by Little, Brown, was criticized online for a reference to Anne Frank that some people are calling antisemitic. The line in question concerns a character, Vivi, who plans to stay in the attic of a friend’s Nantucket house. “You’re suggesting I hide here all summer?” Vivi asks. “Like…like Anne Frank?”
Multiple Instagram users complained about the line, including PoursandPages, who called it, “The horrifically antisemitic ‘joke’ that was made in this book….” Hilderbrand responded by saying, “If you read my novel SUMMER OF ’69, you know that I absolutely REVERE the story of Anne Frank. The line was not a throwaway quip. It was an expression of angst from someone who felt marginalized socioeconomically. But nonetheless if I offended you and/or anyone else, I owe you a huge apology.”