HE SAID THE DATA WAS UNEQUIVOCAL
AND CUT AGAINST THE NARRATIVE
FROM THE SUMMER OF 2020.
JOINING ME IS ZACH FORMER DATA
SCIENTIST AT THOMPSON REUTERS.
EXPLAIN TO THE AUDIENCE WHAT
HAPPENED WHEN YOU BROUGHT THE
DATA TO YOUR BOSS?
>> YEAH, THANKS FOR HAVING ME
ON, LAURA.
SO BASICALLY WHAT HAPPENED WAS,
I HAD BEEN FOLLOWING THIS -- THE
RESEARCH COMING OUT OF MAJOR
UNIVERSITIES AND I HAD COMPILED
IT INTO A SUMMARY AND I POSTED
THAT TO OUR INTERNAL
COLLABORATION PLATFORM TO START
TO TRY TO BUILD SOME KIND OF
DISCUSSION AROUND THE FACT THAT,
YOU KNOW, WHAT WE WERE REPORTING
TO THE PUBLIC AND WHAT WE WERE,
YOU KNOW, AND THE ASSUMPTIONS
THAT WE HAD WITHIN THE COMPANY,
JUST DID NOT MATCH THE DATA.
AND WHEN I POSTED THAT ON OUR
INTERNAL MESSAGE FORUMS TO TRY
TO GET THAT CONVERSATION
STARTED, WHAT HAPPENED WAS IT
IMMEDIATELY MADE ME THE TARGET
OF A BARRAGE OF REALLY INTENSELY
HATEFUL AND ULTIMATELY RACIAL
ICED ATTACKS.
AND THEN THE COMPANY’S REACTION
TO THAT WAS BASICALLY JUST TO
SHUT DOWN, YOU KNOW, TO SENSOR
EVERYTHING THAT I HAD WRITTEN,
SENSOR ANY KIND OF CRITICISM OF
THE BLACK LIVES MATTER MOVEMENT
AND SHUT DOWN THE CONVERSATION.
>> Laura: SO YOU WERE JUST
BRINGING THE ACTUAL FACTS,
THOUGH, OR WERE YOU
EDITORIALIZING ON THE FACTS?
WERE YOU TELLING THEM THIS IS
THE NUMBER THAT I CAME UP WITH
WITHOUT A POLITICAL COMMENTARY?
>> NO, IT REALLY WASN’T A
POLITICAL COMMENTARY.
IT REALLY WAS JUST FOCUSING ON
THE FACTS.
I LOOKED AT STATISTICS FROM THE
GOVERNMENT.
I LOOKED AT THE BEST STUDIES,
PROBABLY THE BEST ONE COMING OUT
OF HARVARD BY ONE OF THE MOST,
YOU KNOW, A VERY FAMOUS AND
WELL-RESPECTED RESEARCHER, ROWAN
FRIAR.
THAT STILL STANDS AS PROBABLY
THE BEST STUDY ON POLICE BIAS ON
LETHAL SHOOTINGS AND I WAS
REALLY JUST TRYING TO PUT
TOGETHER THE WHOLE, THE WHOLE
PICTURE THAT’S COMING OUT OF
THESE RESEARCH INSTITUTIONS.
AND, YEAH, NO ONE WANTED TO HEAR
IT.
>> Laura: WELL, I WANT TO PLAY
FOR YOU WHAT THE CO-FOUNDER OF
BLM, THE MOVEMENT, SAID TODAY
ADDRESSING HER MOUNTING
FINANCIAL SCANDALS.
WATCH.
>> THE WAY THAT THE RIGHT WING
MEDIA SPECIFICALLY HAS
CHARACTERIZED THE MISTAKES ARE
TRULY ANTI BLACK.
THEY ARE ABOUT THIS IDEA THAT
BLACK PEOPLE, ESPECIALLY BLACK
WOMEN, DON’T KNOW HOW TO MANAGE
MONEY, DON’T NOW HOW TO MANAGE
IF YOU UNDERSTAND, DON’T KNOW
WHAT TO DO WITH MONEY AND THE
REALITY IS, WITHIN THE
ORGANIZATION RECEIVES TENS OF
MILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN ONE TO
TWO MONTHS TIME EVERYBODY WOULD
BE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT YOU
DO WITH IT.
>> Laura: ZACH THERE SEEMS TO
HAVE BEEN A CIRCLING THE WAGONS
FOR BLM WHEN THIS NEWS STARTED
TO TRICKLE OUT AND IT SEEMS TO
HAPPEN IN CORPORATE AMERICA AS
WELL.
>> YEAH.
I MEAN, IT’S REALLY NOT
SURPRISING IN A SENSE.
LIKE THE ETHICAL SORT OF
FAILURES THAT WOULD LEAD TO SORT
OF SPREADING THESE LIES ABOUT
POLICE BIAS SEEMS LIKE THE SAME
FAILURES WITH MASSIVE FINANCIAL
SCANDALS WHERE MILLIONS, SOME
PEOPLE SAY BILLIONS OF DOLLARS
ARE UNACCOUNTED FOR IN
ORGANIZATIONS.
IN A SENSE IT WOULD NOT BE
SURPRISING YOU HAVE ACTIVISTS.
THERE’S ACTIVISTS THROUGH ALL
POLITICAL STRIFES THAT ARE
PROBABLY UNETHICAL.
THE PROBLEM TO ME IS OUR MEDIA
INSTITUTIONS AND OUR OTHER
SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS RAISE THESE
ACTS VISITS UP AND PROMOTED
THEIR MESSAGES.
>> Laura: WITHOUT QUESTIONING,
ZACH.
WITHOUT ANY QUESTIONING.
NO ACCOUNT ABILITY.
I MEAN, WHAT’S AMAZING AND I
DON’T MEAN TO INTERRUPT YOU BUT
YOU ACTUALLY WERE BRINGING DATA
TO THE EQUATION, THE SCIENCE AND
DATA PEOPLE, RIGHT?
THEY DON’T WANT TO HEAR THE
SCIENCE AND DATA.
THEY’RE NOT INTERESTED IN IT
UNLESS IT ADVANCES THEIR