CBS Selects 18 Groups to Receive $20 Million to Fight Sexual Harassment

Note: This article was updated Tuesday, December 18, at 11:15 a.m. to say that Moonves will not receive a $120 million severance package.

CBS Corporation today selected 18 organizations to receive a total of $20 million to help eliminate sexual harassment in the workplace.

In a statement, CBS said, “These organizations represent different critical approaches to combating sexual harassment, including efforts to change culture and improve gender equity in the workplace, train and educate employees, and provide victims with services and support.”

CBS alludes to its current public spat with ousted CEO Les Moonves, who after a New Yorker investigation and follow-up articles in the New York Times was shown to have made unwanted sexual advances to various women, at times using his power to alter their careers. Two outside law firms are leading the investigation into his behavior in the workplace. The former CBS chief has denied any nonconsensual interactions.

Moonves was to have received $120 million in severance pay, by the Board of Directors announced Monday evening it had decided against it.

Time’s Up, one of the grant recipients, previously authored an open letter to CBS saying that the $120 million “will either go to Mr. Moonves or back into the coffers of the company that allowed the culture created by Mr. Moonves to continue,” or it could be used to “create change by going to organizations — and there are many impactful organizations — that can help women of all kinds.”

Help for #MeToo

The New York Women’s Foundation, which received $2.25 million from CBS, or 11 percent of the total $20 million, said the grant will support the Fund for the Me Too Movement and Allies, a joint effort with #MeToo movement founder Tarana Burke, “to ensure that the movement is sustained beyond news cycles and hashtags.”

Ana Oliveira, president of the foundation, said the fund officially launched in May and has approximately $3.5 million. The foundation has a fundraising goal of $25 million and supports organizations across the United States working to prevent sexual violence.

“This particular investment from CBS allows us to focus on organizations that are survivor-led,” Oliveira said, adding that it will have a special emphasis on helping women of color and women with less financial stability. “What moved us to do this was hearing from Tarana, who’s been doing this work for more than 11 years without significant philanthropic support.”

Oliveira said philanthropy needs to catch up and help deal with sexual assault and other forms of harassment.

In a joint statement, the organizations said they recognize that the funds “are not a panacea, nor do they erase or absolve decades of bad behavior.”

“Progress will only be possible through a sustained commitment to improve internal culture and policies,” they said, adding, “We look forward to receiving the full results of the investigation into Mr. Moonves and an update on additional concrete commitments that CBS — and all organizations — will make to support lasting change.”

Distribution Plan

CBS said the new grant commitment “ties into the company’s ongoing commitment to strengthening its own workplace culture.” CBS News reported that the funds will be distributed within 60 days of execution of the agreement and that the amount each group will receive was based on their proposal and capacity “to absorb funds relative to their annual budgets.”

Moonves was not involved in selecting the groups, CBS News added, but his lawyer had to approve the decision.

Below is a complete list of CBS grant fund recipients:

• Catalyst
• Collaborative Fund for Women’s Safety and Dignity (through Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors)
• Free the Bid
• Freedom Forum Institute‘s Power Shift Project
• Futures Without Violence
• Girls for Gender Equity / #MeToo Movement
• International Women’s Media Foundation
• National Women’s Law Center
• New York Women’s Foundation
• Press Forward
• Producers Guild of America Foundation
• Rainn
• Strive International
• Sundance Institute’s Momentum Fellowship Program
• Time’s Up Entertainment
• Time’s Up Legal Defense Fund
• Women in Film Los Angeles
• Women’s Media Center