In an investigative piece by Buzzfeed News, the producers and creators of 'Ellen' have been accused of creating a "toxic environment" for workers in the past.
The piece alleges that, behind the scenes, the show's motto of 'Be Kind' was mostly "performative bullshit", and that workers were regularly fired for taking medical leave, or attending a family funeral, while others said that racism and discrimination were all too common on the show.
Others, however, have defended the show and said that the environment is typical in TV, but the show's producers have issued statements on Buzzfeed's piece. "Over the course of nearly two decades, 3,000 episodes, and employing over 1,000 staff members, we have strived to create an open, safe, and inclusive work environment," the statement begins.
"We are truly heartbroken and sorry to learn that even one person in our production family has had a negative experience. It's not who we are and not who we strive to be, and not the mission Ellen has set for us.
"For the record, the day-to-day responsibility of the Ellen show is completely on us. We take all of this very seriously and we realise, as many in the world are learning, that we need to do better, are committed to do better, and we will do better."
In the past, Ellen herself has been accused of mistreating staff and generally being quite mean to people. She recently received criticism for describing being stuck indoors for quarantine as "the same as prison", while a Twitter thread from earlier this year went viral and received over 17,000 retweets when it invited people to share stories of how Ellen mistreated people.
Ellen herself has not yet commented on Buzzfeed's piece.
