*By Max Godnick*
TV writers are used to responding to notes from network executives. Now, they're catering to fans on Twitter, too.
Karin Gist, showrunner of Fox's "Star", and Kriss Turner Towner, executive producer of the OWN Network's "Greenleaf", are responsible for steering the creative direction of their respective shows. They said that viewers' reactions on social media helps determine some of the choices they make in their writers' rooms.
"Black Twitter has a lot of power in Hollywood," said Gist in an interview with Cheddar's Brad Smith at the American Black Film Festival in Miami.
The term "Black Twitter" is frequently used to refer to the network of users who collectively weigh in on matters of cultural, political, and societal importance. The notion has already helped bring memes, hashtags, and movements like Black Lives Matter to prominence. Gist and Turner Towner said they make content decisions with the abstract group in mind.
"We care about our audience and what does Black Twitter say, so we have a responsibility to our viewers," said Turner Towner, adding, "Because of social media, we take that into account more."
Gist and Turner Towner are two of just a few African-American women at the helm of major television shows. While their two current projects center on stories about underrepresented communities, they said they don't feel as though they're being limited in the types of stories they tell on screen.
"I no longer think of it as a box, I think of it as an opportunity and a privilege," said Gist.
Both women encouraged writers of colors to tell stories that are true to themselves, emphasizing their potential as a mechanism for progress in Hollywood's road to better diversity and inclusion.
"I think it's really important to kind of tell your story, be honest about it, and be unapologetic about it," said Gist.
"The box is freakin' fantastic," she said.
For the full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/running-the-show-in-a-tv-writers-room).
Premio Lo Nuestro 2022 is kicking off awards season this month with its 34th show. The star-studded event will include performances from Pitbull, Luis Fonsi — and even Sting with his new Spanish-language single "Por Su Amor." Ignacio Meyer, the vice president of music and non-scripted entertainment, Univision, joined Cheddar News to talk about the music award show details. "We’ve actually still got plenty of surprises that were going to be announcing," Meyer said. "We're not done announcing the star power just yet." Singer Camilo leads with 10 nominations going into the event.
Black spending power reached a record $1.6 Trillion in a 2021 report from the University of Georgia Selig Center for Economic Growth. Ayesha Selden, certified financial planner, breaks down why real estate is the key to closing the racial wealth gap and how Black Americans are using social media to improve financial literacy. "If we look at home ownership as being a primary driver of wealth, when you look at the equity that Americans have in their homes, that equity can be used to buy additional assets like other rental properties. That equity can be used to educate our children," Selden said, noting that lower rates of home ownership meant Black Americans tend to incur more debt on average for their student loans.
On this episode of Cheddar Reveals, Dr. Kate Strasdin, fashion historian & senior lecturer in Cultural Studies at Falmouth University, discusses the lessons industry leaders draw from history to make fashion more sustainable today; Kendall Becker, fashion editor and trend forecaster, forecasts the hottest trends of 2022, and what will be left in 2021; Cheddar gets a look at Curiosity Stream's 'Going Circular.'
Dr. Kate Strasdin, fashion historian & senior lecturer in Cultural Studies at Falmouth University, joins Cheddar Reveals to discuss the lessons industry leaders draw from history to make fashion more sustainable today.
A new survey from Etoro suggests that talking crypto might actually help Americans on the dating scene find love...or at least land another date. The survey found that 74% of respondents would be more interested in going on a second date with a person that pays the bill in Bitcoin. Callie Cox, Etoro's U.S. investment analyst, joined Cheddar News to discuss.
Energy Vault, the company developing sustainable, grid-scale energy storage solutions, is now trading on the New York Stock Exchange following the completion of its business combination with Novus Capital Corporation II. Energy Vault develops sustainable, grid-scale energy storage solutions designed to advance the transition to a carbon free, resilient power grid. Robert Piconi, co-founder and CEO of Energy Vault, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to disucss.
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