This Aug. 14, 1978 photo released by CBS shows Sanford "Sandy" Socolow of CBS News. (AP Photo/CBS)
NEW YORK (AP) --
Sanford Socolow, a longtime CBS News executive who was a right-hand man to anchor Walter Cronkite, has died. The Manhattan resident died at 86 at Lenox Hill Hospital because of complications from a long illness.
Socolow was an executive producer at the "CBS Evening News" when Cronkite was anchor. He was also a Washington bureau chief for CBS News and rose to vice president there, supervising all hard news programming. He produced coverage of moon landings anchored by Cronkite and much of the network's Vietnam War coverage, including Morley Safer's 1965 report that showed U.S. Marines burning a Vietnamese village.
Socolow, known as "Sandy," was a producer at "60 Minutes" when he retired in the mid-1980s.
He died on Saturday, and is survived by two sons and a daughter.
Pepsi soft drinks in plastic bottles are on sale at a grocery store in New York on Weds., Nov. 15, 2023. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey, File)
PepsiCo confirmed Friday that it's ending some of its diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, even as rival Coca-Cola voiced support for its own inclusion efforts.
In a memo sent to employees, PepsiCo CEO Ramon Laguarta said the company will no longer set goals for minority representation in its managerial roles or supplier base. The company will also align its sponsorships to events and groups that promote business growth, he said.
Laguarta wrote that inclusion remains important to PepsiCo, whose brands include Gatorade, Lay's potato chips, Doritos, Mountain Dew as well as Pepsi. The Purchase, New York-based company's chief diversity officer will transition to a broader role focused on employee engagement, leadership development and ensuring an inclusive culture, he said.
Since President Donald Trump returned to the White House last month, U.S. government agencies, companies and schools have rushed to reevaluate policies and programs they adopted with the goal of reducing discrimination against members of minority groups, women and LGBTQ+ people.
Trump ended DEI programs within the federal government and has warned schools to end DEI programs or risk losing federal money.
PepsiCo's rollback came as Coca-Cola reaffirmed support for its DEI efforts.
In its annual report, Atlanta-based Coke warned that its business could be negatively affected if it is unable to attract employees that reflect its broad range of customers.
"Failure to maintain a corporate culture that fosters innovation, collaboration and inclusion … could disrupt our operations and adversely affect our business and our future success," the company said.
Coca-Cola has set a goal of having women in 50% of its senior leadership roles by... Read More
