Judy Smith, the real inspiration for ‘Scandal’s’ Olivia Pope, and dr. Shaun Harper, a USC professor, both walked away from the HFPA on Tuesday, and PR firm Sunshine Sachs and law firm Ropes & & Gray LLP may not be far behind.
The bad years of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association only got worse.
In the aftermath of a February 21 Los Angeles Times an article that revealed that the organization behind the Golden Globe Awards currently counts black people among its members. The HFPA has promised to do so on May 6, but as the date approaches, it finds itself in greater disarray than ever.
On Tuesday, the management of the HFPA was put under pressure by NBC, its Globes broadcasting partner, and MRC, the owner of the Globes production company Dick Clark Productions, to suspend Philip Berk, a 44-year veteran of the group and eight-time president, after the Los Angeles Times reported that Berk sent a racist email to his fellow members on Sunday.
Things only got worse from there, The Hollywood Reporter can report exclusively.
The situation in Berk was the last straw for Smith & Company, the strategic advisory and crisis communications company run by the well-known ‘fixer’. Judy Smith, the real inspiration for Scandal‘s Olivia Pope, retained by the HFPA’s law firm, Lathan & Watkins, to advise the organization slightly more than a month ago.
Early in the relationship, Smith was apparently furious about the recommendation of dr. Shaun Harper, a professor at the USC, who appointed the HFPA on March 9 to serve as an advisor for diversity and inclusion (D&I), that the HFPA adds 13 new black members – a seemingly arbitrary number, which then increases the HFPA membership at 100 would bring – before the next Globe ceremony. Thereafter, she became increasingly frustrated with the organization’s refusal to listen to other advice and committed themselves to taking action, and eventually came to the conclusion that the problems were so deeply rooted that it was a lost cause, which led her to quit Tuesday.
Smith could not be reached for comment.
Harper, meanwhile, met with representatives of Time’s Up on Tuesday, including Ava DuVernay and Shonda Rhimes, and of the PR firms that said they would withhold talent from the HFPA events unless major changes were introduced by 6 May. The meeting reportedly did not go well, and Harper was opposed to the proposal regarding 13 new black members and concluded that the extent of the problem was greater than he originally understood, which eventually led to has that he also resigned his post.
Harper could not be reached for comment, but THR received a copy of his resignation letter, which reads in part: ‘Now that I have learned more about the association’s deep systemic and reputation challenges, I no longer have confidence in our ability to put together the transformational change that the industry and the people in it offer. to deliver. I ask you a lot. My serious, unwavering commitment to the racial and gender equality issues I work on every day makes it impossible for me to continue to serve as a consultant at the HFPA.
Harper also released the HFPA to compensate him for any of his work over the past six weeks.
The next domino that falls? Sources say that Sunshine Sachs, the HFPA’s longtime PR firm, is considering abandoning the organization as a client, as well as Ropes & Gray LLP, the law firm that retained the HFPA on March 9 to conduct a comprehensive review of the Execute HFPA policy; assess its membership process, operations and management; and review its alignment with best industry practices in different areas.
Ropes & Gray and Sunshine Sachs could not be reached for comment.