Netflix has finally launched a crackdown on woke workers trying to silence artists such as Dave Chappelle.
The streaming service dished out a new ‘culture memo’ telling staff if they are offended by the content they can leave the firm.
Bosses warned they will not ‘censor specific artists or voices’ even if employees consider the content ‘harmful’.
The document also called on workers to tighten their belts and reign in corporate spending as the company’s finances falter.
The ailing platform has shelled out millions of viewers over the last year as rivals Amazon, Disney and Apple pick up steam.
Stocks have nosedived over the last six months from nearly $700 to as low as $166 yesterday despite a slight rise to $174 in pre-market trading.
Meanwhile the company has been at war with itself over airing content some woke workers claim is harmful to them.
Young activists have targeted the likes of comedian Chappelle for jokes about transgender people and aimed to get him cancelled.
But Netflix finally appeared to be stamping out the backlash with its new memo titled: ‘Netflix Culture — Seeking Excellence.’
In a new section called Artistic Expression, it says: ‘Entertaining the world is an amazing opportunity and also a challenge because viewers have very different tastes and points of view.
‘So we offer a wide variety of TV shows and movies, some of which can be provocative.
‘To help members make informed choices about what to watch, we offer ratings, content warnings and easy to use parental controls.
‘Not everyone will like — or agree with — everything on our service.
‘While every title is different, we approach them based on the same set of principles: we support the artistic expression of the creators we choose to work with; we program for a diversity of audiences and tastes; and we let viewers decide what’s appropriate for them, versus having Netflix censor specific artists or voices.’
It adds: ‘As employees we support the principle that Netflix offers a diversity of stories, even if we find some titles counter to our own personal values.
‘Depending on your role, you may need to work on titles you perceive to be harmful. If you’d find it hard to support our content breadth, Netflix may not be the best place for you.’
The memo, which was sent to staff on Thursday, is the first update to the culture guide in five years when it used to just be called ‘Netflix Culture’.
But it keeps the core principles of the original document with notes on empowering employee decision-making and calling for candid feedback.
The new docket appeared to be Netflix taking a firm stand against those trying to thwart artistic content they disagree with.
Chappelle is one of the performers who has come under fire for his show The Closer that caused an eruption at the company last fall.
Some woke activists claimed it contained transphobic and homophobic content and called for it to be canned.
He said in the stand up special ‘gender is a fact,’ and criticized what he said was the thin skin of the trans community.
The jokes were based on observations made by Harry Potter author JK Rowling, who in 2019 said trans women were not actually women and were a threat to her identity.
But Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos rowed in behind Chappelle and continued to publish the show – triggering a mass exodus of woke workers.
The new memo also contains a section aiming at getting staff to cut down on spending under the ‘Valued Behaviors’ heading.
It says: ‘You spend our members’ money wisely.’ It continues: ‘There are virtually no spending controls and few contract signing controls.
‘Each employee is expected to seek advice and perspective as appropriate. ‘Use good judgment’ is our core precept.’
But the new document removed: ‘Note that if our company experienced financial difficulty, we wouldn’t ask our employees to accept less pay.
‘A sports team with a losing record still pays top of personal market for the players they hope will get them back into a winning position.
‘On the other hand, if the company does well, our broadly distributed stock options become quite valuable.’
Other sections added include Ethical Expectations, Representation Matters and ‘Employees Direct Our Philanthropy’.
The first one appeared to be in reaction to an employee having to be fired in October after admitting they downloaded internal data and shared it with a third party.
It included financial data on Squid Game and Chappelle’s The Closer and was said to be an attempt to point out how much more was spent on the comedian’s show.
Netflix says all its thousands of staff had the chance to see and contribute ideas for the new culture memo using a shared document.
It comes as the firm is being dragged through the ringer as it faces huge cash losses amid a mass exodus of viewers to rivals.
It said on April 19 it had lost 200,000 subscribers in the first three months of the year – the first time in a decade their numbers have fallen.
They said they expect to lose two million more in the second quarter, and the share price fell significantly, wiping away roughly $70billion in market capitalization.
Netflix’s co-chief executive Reed Hastings said the firm was considering introducing adverts on a cheaper subscription package.
But a note to staff, obtained by The New York Times on Tuesday, showed the pace of the proposal was drastically accelerated.
It says: ‘Yes, it’s fast and ambitious and it will require some trade-offs. Every major streaming company excluding Apple has or has announced an ad-supported service.
‘For good reason, people want lower-priced options.’
The executives pointed out HBO and Hulu have been able to ‘maintain strong brands while offering an ad-supported service.’
Netflix currently offers several plans to its 221.64million subscribers – all without advertising.
Its most popular scheme costs $15.49 a month, and it was unclear how much the new one would be.
HBO Max charges $15 a month for uninterrupted viewing, and $10 a month with advertising.
Netflix executives said the advertising-supported tier would be introduced ‘in tandem with our broader plans to charge for sharing.’
Netflix is also in talks to join forces with The Trade Desk, which helps advertisers with their online campaigns, and which has former chief financial officer David Wells on their board.
They are also intending on clamping down on the sharing of accounts.
Greg Peters, Netflix’s chief operating officer, said: ‘So if you’ve got a sister, let’s say, that’s living in a different city — you want to share Netflix with her, that’s great.
‘We’re not trying to shut down that sharing, but we’re going to ask you to pay a bit more to be able to share with her.’
He said that the changes would take ‘a year or so of iterating’ to roll out in their entirety.
Netflix stock was up around 4.5 percent on Friday but is yet to bounce back from last month’s rout.
The price was $348.61 at market close on April 19, fell to $226.19 on April 20, and was at $177 by Tuesday evening.