
Netflix made a mess of the Dave Chappelle controversy. It's a crisis of Netflix's own making
CNN
The Dave Chappelle comedy special, "The Closer," has thrust Netflix into its biggest crisis ever. It's a mess of the company's own making.
Chappelle's special, which debuted on Netflix earlier this month, caused a firestorm inside and outside the company. It includes several jokes about trans people that some found deeply offensive. Netflix has stood by the special, even after it was criticized as transphobic by some LGBTQ+ advocates, artists and even Netflix's own employees.
"Promoting [trans-exclusionary radical feminist] ideology (which is what we did by giving it a platform yesterday) directly harms trans people," Terra Field, a senior software engineer at Netflix, tweeted earlier this month. "It is not some neutral act."

One year ago this week, Joe Biden was president. I was in Doha, Qatar, negotiating with Israel and Hamas to finalize a ceasefire and hostage release deal. The incoming Trump team worked closely with us, a rare display of nonpartisanship to free hostages and end a war. It feels like a decade ago. A lot can happen in a year, as 2025 has shown.












