Two local news anchors in Arkansas were suspended from work last month for wearing afro wigs as a joke on the air. Both news anchor Chris May and meteorologist Barry Brandt are white, so their use of afro-style wigs was considered overtly racist. The network, KATV, has condemned their actions.
KATV is based in Little Rock, Arkansas, where a merciless heat wave persisted for several weeks from September into August. When it finally broke in mid-September, May and Brandt chose a shocking way to celebrate — they wore afro-style wigs on the 10 p.m. news on Sept. 16, according to a report by The New York Post. They called the segment “return to the 70s,” because the temperatures had dropped below 80 degrees Fahrenheit, and the wigs were meant to be a joke about 1970s fashion. To many viewers, it was reportedly more akin to Blackface.
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May and Brandt were pleased with their wordplay in the segment, and they highlighted it in now-deleted social media posts as well. However, viewers were shocked, and at least one reached out to the network to complain. Activist Dr. Anika Whitfield said that she reached out to KATV, and when she did not get a response she went up the corporate ladder to contact Sinclair Broadcast Group vice president John Seabers.
“We apologize to all viewers who were rightfully offended by the segment, and we promise to enact and enforce new measures to prevent future incidents from occurring,” Seabers said in a public apology. Another spokesperson for the company spoke to AdWeek, adding: “Swift action was important to hold the responsible parties accountable.”
That “swift action” includes suspending May and Brandt from work indefinitely, and firing news director Nick Genty. Genty reportedly held his position for a long time, while both Brandt and May have worked at the station for over 20 years.
The staff at KATV had reportedly just undergone a six-week-long racial sensitivity training prior to this incident. It began when a new Black news anchor was hired, and someone left a stereotypical “mammy doll” figurine on their desk. The company says that it will undergo “further training for sensitivity and workplace conduct, in line with our commitment to ensuring events like this don’t happen again.”
