Jane Rosenthal attends the AT&T Presents: Untold Stories luncheon, in conjunction with the Tribeca Film Festival, at Thalassa on Monday, April 22, 2019, in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
NEW YORK (AP) --
The co-founder of the Tribeca Film Festival called on women filmmakers to keep building on the momentum of the #MeToo and Time's Up era.
This year for the first time, half of the films in Tribeca's competition categories are directed or co-directed by women. That's up from 44 percent last year.
Jane Rosenthal, who co-founded the festival with Robert De Niro, told attendees at the Chanel Tribeca Women Filmmakers Luncheon Friday that if a window has now been opened, "it's only because of all of us that that window is going to stay open," and that necessary change will be made.
Rosenthal told the crowd that they "cannot be the exception. We have to be the norm in every business."
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 โฆ 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
