Why Is Apple’s Chief of Diversity Leaving After 6 Months?

What happened?

Apple’s vice president of diversity and inclusion is leaving the company at the end of the year after assuming the role in May. Denise Young Smith has been at Apple since 1997 and most recently served as human resources chief; the abrupt announcement just six months after she took on the diversity chief role came as a surprise.

Wasn’t there some controversy about her earlier?

Yes. Young Smith was under fire last month after she made comments on diversity and inclusion that were viewed as controversial, and she has since apologized for her “choice of words.”

What did she say?

As part of a much larger discussion about diversity in the workplace, Young Smith said that diversity of thought and experience is valuable regardless of your gender or racial background.

“Diversity is the human experience. I get a little bit frustrated when diversity or the term diversity is tagged to the people of color or the women or the LGBT or whatever because that means they’re carrying that around…because that means that we are carrying that around on our foreheads.

“And I’ve often told people a story– there can be 12 white blue-eyed blonde men in a room and they are going to be diverse too because they’re going to bring a different life experience and life perspective to the conversation.”

Is her departure related to the diversity comments?

Hard to say. Young Smith has reportedly been in talks about her future at Apple for a year, so she may have made up her mind to leave long before the backlash. Still, as Doc pointed out while standing in for Glenn on today’s show, it’s ironic that a black woman is stepping down as diversity chief after “controversial” comments and being replaced by a white woman.

Just 3 percent of Apple’s leaders in the U.S. are black, according to TechCrunch.

This article provided courtesy of TheBlaze.

DOC: Some of this stuff deserves to be mocked. Because that's the only way it will be changed. Satire. Sarcasm. And mocking something this ridiculous. I'm not just talking about mocking people you disagree with. Although, if you want to do that, that's fine as well. I think it's nice to be able to engage in a civil conversation and try to find common ground, which we try to do, but when it's this silly, you deserve to be mocked for change.

The way you're going to change this is to mock people like this, to point out how ridiculous it is through humor.

That's the only way it's going to change. How many people on the left are calling this guy out? When they read it, even if it's crazy and they know it's crazy, are they going to be like, dude, come on? They're not.

KAL: Even there, they're like, you're stretching it a bit. You're reaching.

DOC: Right. In their heart of hearts, they know it is.

But they don't say it. It's either one of two things, they look the other way because he's on the team, or they know it's going to help push the agenda. By any means necessary. The end justifies the means.

And then some of them are likely crazy and believe it as well. But most people know it's ridiculous. That whites somehow have greater access to outdoors.

KAL: That's so ridiculous.

DOC: It's insane. So mock it. Share it. And it should be. A lot of people online mocking as well.

If you want to follow me on Twitter. It's @DocThompsonshow. Use the #whatIlearnedtoday. You can join the program. We have some calls coming up. It's 888-727-BECK. 888-727-BECK.

We'll get some calls in a couple of minutes. Denise Young -- Denise Young Smith, rather, was named Apple's VP of diversity and inclusion in May. Remember that?

KAL: Oh, that's good. Yeah.

DOC: Remember the big discussion we had in May because of the letter that was written? Remember the former CEO of Facebook, or executive at Facebook, or person who worked at Facebook -- we had that whole discussion.

KAL: Yeah.

DOC: And then at Apple, they had this brouhaha. Anyway, they appointed her as the VP of diversity and inclusion in May. She's stepping down.

KAL: That's only been, what? Like six months?

DOC: Denise Young Smith --

KAL: A little less?

DOC: Yeah. Not even. Yep. Stepping down because of something she said.

KAL: Oh, boy. What did she say? Was it allowed outdoors?

DOC: During a summit in Columbia, she said -- now, she is a black woman, mind you.

KAL: Uh-huh.

DOC: Apple's VP of diversity and inclusion. Apple's VP of diversity and inclusion said she likes to focus on everyone, and that diversity goes beyond race, gender, and sexual orientation. She said, there can be twelve white blue-eyed, blonde men in a room, and they're going to be diverse too because they're going to bring different life experience and life perspectives to the conversation.

KAL: Good. I like that.

DOC: She's right.

KAL: Yeah, she is. She got fired for that?

DOC: Well...

She is stepping down.

KAL: Which means she was asked to step down?

DOC: She was fired. That's likely what was meant. She said, diversity is a human experience. She said, I get a little bit frustrated when diversity or the term diversity is tagged to people of color or women or LGBT. She said, we're not representative have how I think about diversity or how Apple sees it. Those were her later apologies, that's when she later apologized.

She said, we're not representative of how I think about diversity or how Apple sees it. For that, I'm sorry. She was forced to apologize. And for what? She basically said --

KAL: Don't judge a book by its cover?

DOC: Well, she said something that I said over and over again: Your claim and maybe accurate claim that you have it worse off because of, fill in the blank. Your race, your gender, your religion. Even if it's true that you are either disadvantaged because of your race -- you walk in, there's more white people. Maybe there's a bias. Even if it's an underlying subconscious bias, fine. Let's go with it and say that you are at a disadvantage. There are many ways to advantage or disadvantage people. And, you know what, very few of them have to do with race. There are more ways that you can disadvantage people that have nothing to do with race or religion or gender. Economic situation.

And that could be all kinds of different things. You know what else disadvantages people? Stupidity. You're just dumb. You think you're going to get that job as the CEO if you're dumb?

KAL: Probably not.

DOC: No, of course not. Let's say you're average intelligence, but you don't have any common sense. Okay. That may actually help you, based on the bosses that I've had. How about fat?

KAL: Yeah.

DOC: How about fat? You're going to be seen the same way when you're fat?

KAL: No.

DOC: Of course not. Let's say if you're fat with less control of it than other people. Some people, myself, you're fat because you're a little bit lazy, you're eating too much. You know, whatever. You're not taking care of yourself. You're not doing the hard work. Your metabolism slows a little when you get older. Fine. There are a lot of people though that are fat because of underlying circumstances. They also just generally have a slower metabolism. It's more difficult for them.

All things being equal, guy walks in the room who is thin, guy walks in the room who is fat, who is getting the job?

KAL: The thin guy.

DOC: How about ugly? Ugly.

KAL: Oh, yeah. You can't control that.

DOC: You cannot control ugly. And guess what, it's going to advantage you if you're pretty.

KAL: Absolutely.

DOC: All things being equal, good-looking guy walks in the room, bad-looking guy walks in the room. Who is getting the job? The good-looking guy. Right? All things being equal. Good-looking woman walks in the job. Ugly woman walks in the job. Who is getting it?

KAL: Good-looking.

DOC: No. The one with the large breasts. That's usually how it goes.

No. Seriously, but that matters too. Even if it's subconscious. We like certain things. Individuals, you're constantly making millions of calculations all the time.

Every time, sizing everything up, in every situation. On levels you don't even know about. And you are attracted to things that are attractive to you. You are drawn to things that are like you. Things that you appreciate.

And that's okay. It's human nature. It's not to say, well, welcome in, Bill, can't give you the job because you're black. Have a good day. I'm not justifying that. That's wrong. I'm saying that you can't control some of this. And, by the way, that's not just to say that white people are saying it. It happens with every race. Right?

You're an Asian guy and you're doing some hiring, you're going to have some biases, based on your race. But then, beyond race, religion, and gender, there are other ways you could be disadvantaged or disadvantaged.

I grew up near Cleveland, Ohio. How do you think that helped me out? Versus the guy who grew up in Malibu or Florida or whatever. A lot of places -- is it a small advantage or disadvantage?

Sure. But still, those things matter. Who is more interesting at the party? Right?

The guy who was from Key West, the guy who was from Manhattan, or the guy from Cleveland.

KAL: Hey. It's all about life experiences.

DOC: Well, these things all add up who you are and what you present. Another thing, your name. And I'm not talking about ethnic names which, by the way, those biased people as well. They've done studies where if you have certain ethnic names, it could bias you or whatever. But really bizarre, goofy, bad, whatever name, versus seemingly more traditional name.

There are countless ways you're advantaged or disadvantaged.

And yet, these Black Lives Matter groups, the people who constantly tell you that they're getting the worse deal. Meanwhile, they live in America, in 2017, where it is impossible to starve.

KAL: Yeah.

DOC: The only way you're starving is if you are simply -- if you're not willing to pick up the food and put it in your mouth. And sometimes, we even put it in your mouth for you.

Seriously, there's food everywhere. We throw out better food than some people eat on a regular basis.

KAL: Oh, absolutely.

DOC: This is just how it is. There's food banks everywhere. There's welfare. There's like 16 federal government plans to give you money and food.

You live in America in 2017. It's impossible to starve. You've got protections like nowhere else. America, the most diverse country on the planet, to check out that last Olympics.

KAL: Uh-huh.

DOC: In walks the Chinese team. How many white people do they have on it?

KAL: None.

DOC: All righty then. That team from Mexico, how many black people and Asian people do they have on it?

KAL: None.

DOC: No. Probably not a whole lot. You see the American team. Blacks, whites, Asians, Hispanics.

KAL: Yep. All kinds.

DOC: We are the most diverse country. And yet we let people lie to us and promote the fact that we need help with diversity. Screw that. The rest of the world needs help with diversity. If it matters so much. How come you're not bitching about China for not having more non-Asian people? Because they're Chinese. It's who they are. It's different. And it's acceptable.

KAL: That's a great point. I wonder if the rhetoric in these other countries is the same as it is here, about diversity.

DOC: The Chinese people going, you know, it's all these Asian people. I don't get it.

KAL: But, I mean, are there different levels of Chinese?

DOC: Of course. There's classes. There's regions. There's classes.

KAL: But do they cry for equality in the same way --

DOC: It's more economic. See, but we have allowed people to tie economic inequality to racial inequality. And they'll use it back and forth, whatever benefits them. So when Denise Young Smith, the former now VP of Apple, heading up diversity inclusion says that diversity goes beyond race, gender, and sexual orientation, she's right.

What we have allowed people to do is walk into a room, see white people, and say, "It's not diverse."

KAL: Yeah.

DOC: No, it may be. You could have all black people, and it could be diverse. It's all about life experiences, what you bring to the table. All of these things that aren't easily measurable. But they want to look, ironically, at the color of a person's skin and size up the situation.

KAL: It's incredibly racist, ironically.

DOC: It is incredibly racist. Stop. Knock it off. There's no way you will ever get to true diversification in all things. Okay. We have picked these 14 people to head up our whatever department and we've got exactly the same number of people from this region of the country and this person who is this weight. And this person who is this height. How about height? You don't think the tall guy is going to get the job? Of course he will. So we got to make sure we have proportionate people that are short, middle, tall, whatever. There's no way to go down the list and check every box and make sure it's even across-the-board.

How about this? We start judging people on their character.

Not if they're from Cleveland. Or short. Or fat. Or rich. Or white. How about the content of their character?

KAL: Whoa, whoa, whoa.

DOC: It's crazy, I know.

KAL: Crazy. Step it back some.

It’s no secret that Glenn has a less-than-optimistic view of emerging AI and when you look at the horrifying new technologies that utilize the power of AI it’s hard not to agree.

Here’s a look at 7 new AI technologies that will HORRIFY you:

AI Brainwave Monitoring

Earlier this year during the World Economic Forum's annual meeting, Nita Robinson, a professor of law and philosophy at Duke, presented a video that depicted a “hypothetical” situation where a person's brainwaves are monitored by their earbuds, which have the ability to record brainwaves, decode them with AI, and then send brain reports to their boss and are accessible by government agencies. When the video ends, Robinson makes the terrifying announcement that this AI technology already exists! It's just a matter of time before it's implemented.

If you want to learn more about Brainwave tracking and the WEF, you can watch this clip from the Glenn Beck Program.

AI Voice Cloning

Last month, Glenn covered a terrifying story involving a scammer who created an AI clone of a child's voice in order to scam money out of her terrified parents. While this might sound advanced, a quick Google search reveals that this technology is remarkably accessible and is easily able to replicate the voice of anyone. Imagine the havoc that could be inflicted on your life with an AI clone of your voice.

AI Mind Reader

Left shows stories read to user and right shows what the AI was able to decode from users brain activity

Image credit: University of Texas at Austin

Like something out of Star Trek, a team of researchers at the University of Texas at Austin developed a new AI that is able to decode brain activity and produce a transcript of a person's thoughts with reasonable accuracy, all without the need for implants or other invasive measures. While the researchers assure us that the technology has major limitations, including the need to train this AI extensively on each subject's brain, it’s only a matter of time before the AI is able to overcome these limitations, and it may be sooner than we would like…

Snapchat's new AI “Friend”

Image of My AI's contact on Snapchat

Snapchat

In April the popular social media messaging app Snapchat released a controversial new feature known as “My AI”—an AI chatbot powered by ChatGPT. The new feature acts much like other chatbots. It can answer questions, converse with the user, and offer recommendations. However, unlike other chatbots, it is integrated in such a way that it can be difficult to distinguish from a human user, complete with a customizable avatar and name. Many parents are worried that the friendly appearance of “My AI” will make it hard for their teens to differentiate the bot from a real human. Moreover, the only way to remove the bot is by paying for Snapchat’s premium service, giving parents little recourse for protecting their children.

AI "Big Brother"

In a recent TED talk, former Apple Designer Imran Chaudhri introduced the concept for a new wearable AI device connected to a camera and microphone, enabling the AI to hear and see everything you do. Chaudhri assures us that the device is “privacy-first and safe,” but how safe would you feel with an all-seeing AI accompanying you all day every day?

AI Meddling with Elections

AI generated image of Trump's arrest

Open AI | MARCA News

One terrifying potential use for AI could be meddling with elections. The last few years have seen a decline in faith in our elections, and the emergence of AI will only serve to muddy the waters. As previously mentioned, AI voice clones are here and have been proven to have the ability to create compelling facsimiles of political figures. Combined with AI image technology the threat of an AI-generated scandal is high.

If you want to learn more about AI interference with elections you can watch this clip from the Glenn Beck Program.

AI Dating

Another disturbing development is the creation of “Dating AIs”—AI chatbots designed as a replacement for a boyfriend or girlfriend. There is already a variety of options available with prices ranging from free all the way up to $1 a minute, like some sort of dystopian "call girl." There are already reports of people developing genuine emotional attachments to these bots and others who have married or have tried to marry their artificial lovers.

Global ESG investments PLUNGED 76 percent with NEGATIVE returns on investment

SOPA Images / Contributor | Getty Images

Glenn has been one of the most outspoken critics of the use of ESG by globalist elites to force businesses to comply with their woke agenda. It turns out, not only is ESG bad political practice—it's bad for your wallet too.

Global Investments in ESG Funds PLUNGED 76 percent globally in 2022 from $157.3 billion to $649.1 billion in 2021, with a 20 percent decrease in the U.S. ALONE. This marked the lowest annual net inflow for ESG funds since $69 billion in 2018.


Morningstar via Investopedia

The downturn in ESG investment is largely due to the concerted effort led against ESG led by Glenn and government officials like Ron DeSantis and his anti-ESG 14-state coalition. Thanks to Glenn and DeSantis, an increasing number of states are barring their governments from taking ESG into consideration when determining their investment recipients for state pension and retirement funds. This not only protects critical American industries like oil and gas, but moreover, it protects the First Amendment rights of business owners who don't want to conform to the Left's woke environmentalist and LGBTQ+ standards.

Thanks to Glenn and DeSantis, an increasing number of states are barring their governments from taking ESG into consideration.

However, the massive plunge in ESG investment isn't only attributed to the political pushback against the practice: it also isn't yielding investors the return on investment they were hoping for. In fact, the main ESG funds have a NEGATIVE return on investment.

ESG funds were hit hard by falling equities. One of the largest ESG funds int the U.S., Parnassus Core Equity Fund (PRBLX), fell 26 PERCENT in 2022. This fund performed nearly six percent worse than the S&P 500, which fell 19.44 percent within the same period. Similarly, iShares ESG Aware MSCI USA ETF (ESGU) fell 20 percent, and Vanguard ESG U.S. Stock ETF (ESGV) plummeted 24 percent.

Even the Harvard Business Review admitted investors in ESG have "not fared well":

ESG funds certainly perform poorly in financial terms. [...] Although the highest rated funds in terms of sustainability certainly attracted more capital than the lowest rated funds, none of the high sustainability funds outperformed any of the lowest rated funds [bolded added]. That result might be expected, and it is possible that investors would be happy to sacrifice financial returns in exchange for better ESG performance.

The Harvard Business Review went on to say that ESG funds don't even benefit the environmental and social causes they tout to defend. In fact, when comparing environmental and social compliance between ESG and non-ESG funds, the
"ESG portfolios had worse compliance record for both labor and environmental rules" than their non-ESG competitors.

Let that sink in. ESG funds not only financially underperformed when compared to their non-ESG competitors. They failed to secure the very environmental and social compliance that is central to their original purpose. Missionally, practically, and financially, ESG failure is astounding.

As Glenn has long warned, the only thing that investment firms and governments should be taking into consideration regarding YOUR money is how they can get the best possible return on YOUR investment. We are seeing the detrimental consequences of what happens when woke ideology becomes the basis of investment rather than the recipient's monetary value.

The only thing that governments should take into consideration regarding YOUR money is how to get the best possible return on YOUR investment.

If political conviction alone isn't enough to persuade the general public to ditch ESG, maybe their hurting pursestrings will.

Glenn will show how ESG is being used to further globalist elites' agendas in the second installment of his Great Reset series, Dark Future.To make sure you're caught up and to learn more about ESG, enter your email below to get chapter one of Glenn's first Great Reset book sent straight to your inbox.

You've probably noticed that Glenn is FED UP.

He is FED UP with the crimes that our political elite can get away with. And NO ONE is keeping them accountable! This corruption goes all the way up to the Presidency. Over and over again, the American people have seen headlines of the Biden family's illicit business dealings and crimes both domestic and abroad, yet they ALWAYS get a free pass from the media, and Republicans who promise to hold them accountable, DON'T.

Are you FED UP too?

Glenn laid out the ENTIRE CASE against the "Biden crime family," detailing EVERY crime allegedly committed by the Bidens, going city by city, state by state, country by country.

But we can't stop there.

Now it's up to YOU to demand that they are held responsible. Here's what to do:

  • Step 1. Watch "The Reckoning" (on YouTube or Facebook) and share it with your friends.
  • Step 2.Enter your email HERE to get access to the "Biden Crime Family Dossier" with the full list of crimes and contact information for prosecutors and attorneys general.
  • Step 3. Take action by flooding the phones and emails of the prosecutors and attorneys general in your district and demand they prosecute these crimes.
  • Step 4. Once you've contacted the offices in your relevant district, tweet @glennbeck using the hashtag #Reckoning and let us know who you contacted and whether you received a response.

Like you, Glenn is SICK AND TIRED of our government and media giving the Biden family a free pass for their blatant crimes. Together, let's do something about it.

Watch "The Reckoning" below.

6 in 10 AMERICANS think AI threatens human civilization

PETER PARKS / Contributor | Getty Images

Glenn has hosted several GlennTV episodes exclusively on AI this year ALONE, warning of the existential threat AI technologies could pose to humanity. And he isn't alone.

HALF of all AI researchers think there's a chance that the rapidly advancing technology could result in our extinction. AI researchers are already sounding the alarm bells concerning the fast and largely uncontrollable progression of AI advancement, often comparing the technology's impact to that of the atomic bomb—yet we aren't putting in the same degree of guard rails around THIS research as we did during the Manhattan project.

HALF of all AI researchers think there's a chance that AI could result in our extinction.

It is no wonder why 61 percent of Americans think AI poses a real threat to human civilization, according to a poll recently published by Reuters and Ipsos. To put that in perspective, nearly two-thirds of ALL Americans think AI poses an existential threat. Only 22 percent of Americans are not threatened by AI, while the jury is still out with the remaining 17 percent.


Poll: Reuters/Ipsos

And the overall concern over AI transcends both political and religious affiliations. Though conservatives and evangelical Christians showed the most concern for AI, non-evangelicals/non-religious and those who did not vote for Trump follow close behind.

The overall concern over AI transcends both political and religious affiliations.

Participants who voted for former Trump in 2020 were more likely to be concerned about the threat of AI, with about 70 percent agreeing that AI could threaten humanity within this demographic. However, a whopping 60 percent of those who did not vote for Trump view AI as a threat. When is the last time the Left and the Right disagreed on something by only a margin of 10 percent?

Similarly, 32 percent of Evangelical Christians say they “strongly agree” with the claim that AI threatens humankind, compared to 24 percent of non-Evangelical Christians, a margin of only 8 percent.

Elon Musk recently called for a six-month pause on AI research and development, warning that the technology could pose “risks to society.” Musk further warned that there is a chance AI “goes wrong and destroys humanity," calling AI a “double-edged sword,” due to the difficulty of predicting how the technology could develop on its own.

Glenn aptly posited the following question:

We are the products of a grand Creator. However, when it comes to AI, we are the creator. Will our creation turn on us, as we have turned on our Creator?

According to the Christian tradition, God created mankind with his own free will with the ability to turn towards or away from his Creator. We turned away in an act of rebellion. Unlike other technologies, AI has the potential to develop its own "will." Whether AI's "will" is equal to the humans' in terms of value and degree is another philosophical and theological question entirely, which will not be discussed here.

AI has the potential to develop its own "will."

However, the fact of the matter is that AI does have the ability to act according to its own processes that we, its creators, can neither control or predict. As Glenn so poignantly asks, will our creation rebel against us, as we rebelled against our creator? Is it any wonder why Evangelical Christians have the greatest reservations against AI, because they know the consequences of creation's rebellion from its creator?

Until we can answer this critical question, perhaps we should take heed both to Musk's warning and the intuition of six out of ten Americans and press the pause button on AI research... before it's too late.