Episode 8 - "People of Color" with E. Tammy Kim

Diversity Hire

Hello and welcome to Episode 8 of Diversity Hire.

Our guest this week was E. Tammy Kim, a freelance reporter, and essayist. We invited Tammy to talk to us about a recent New Yorker article she wrote about “The Perils of POC,” the history of the term, and how understanding its limitations might help unlock a more internationalist kind of politics and solidarity. We also discussed how we feel about our work belonging to a diaspora, “Transnationally Asian” millennial magazine makers, why music criticism is both so often bad and hard to write, and our favorite breakup songs.

Arjun and Kevin also talk about the latest happening at Bon Appetit, and Arjun gives us a breakdown of his time on the road. Thanks for listening!

* Arjun calls Kevin from a garden in Kentucky (0:00)

* Tammy, Kevin, and Arjun talk about what they’ve been up to (15:06)

* Tammy talks about why she transitioned from practicing law to being a journalist (17:22)

* What inspired Tammy to write “The Perils of People of Color,” New Yorker, 2020 (21:28)

* Being politicized under the banner of People of Color in college (24:25)

* Asian American proclivity to representational politics and fixing anti-Blackness during times of social change (26:16)

* Arjun, Tammy, and Kevin talk about talking to their parents about Black Lives Matter (28:18)

* Tammy’s experience in the classed environment of the media industry (32:22)

* Can ethical forms of media exist under capitalism? (re: “Transnationally Asian,” Columbia Journalism Review, 2020) (34:43)

* How we can build solidarity amongst people of color on the left by shedding our dependency on categorical labels like BIPOC or diversity (38:23)

* What’s Missoula like? (42:48)

* To what extent are Asians going to claim Kamala? (43:54)

* Tammy’s experience in organizing campaigns at Al Jazeera and The New Yorker 45:10)

* Can we translate workplace politics into global politics (re: “Structure Tests,” The Nation, 2020) (48:18)

* Arjun’s Feeling Don’t Care About Facts Corner, now with new questions! (54:48)

* How Tammy’s news consumption has changed over the years (55:45)

* Does Tammy believe her work belongs to a diaspora? (58:30)

* Kevin, Arjun, and Tammy discuss experiencing a disconnect from their heritage (1:00:44)

* Has Tammy experienced an instance of racism while working in the media (1:04:53)

* Why music criticism is both so often bad and hard to write (1:07:00)

* The Diversity Tribunal (1:12:20)

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